WALES

Departmental Correspondence

Angus MacNeil: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales whether he has made an estimate of the number of  (a) emails and  (b) letters from members of the public to which his Department has responded since May 2007.

Peter Hain: This information could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Departmental Energy

Daniel Rogerson: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what steps his Department plans to take to participate in the Earth Hour event on 27 March 2010.

Peter Hain: The Wales Office obtains its corporate and estates services from the Ministry of Justice, and fall within their sustainability targets and strategic programmes.
	However, the Wales Office is very much entering into the spirit of the Earth Hour event (and the other Government estate sustainability targets) and doing what we ourselves can to reduce our carbon emissions.

Departmental ICT

Philip Hammond: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what information technology projects initiated by his Department were cancelled prior to completion in the last 12 months; and what the cost of each such project was to the public purse.

Wayne David: The Wales Office is provided with its information technology services by the Ministry of Justice, and consequently does not initiate projects.

Departmental Internet

Oliver Heald: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales how many designs for its website his Department has commissioned since 2005.

Wayne David: The Wales Office commissioned one redesign of its website as part of general improvements and modernisation of the website in 2007.

Departmental Paper

Martin Horwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what  (a) suppliers and  (b) brands of (i) paper and (ii) paper products his Department uses; and what his Department's policy is on the procurement of those materials.

Peter Hain: The Wales Office procures the majority of its paper from Banner, under a contract secured through the Ministry of Justice, and this paper is 80g/m2. The paper used in our publications has been at least 75 per cent. recycled.
	The Ministry of Justice is working with Banner to procure a paper that is 100 per cent. recycled, which the Wales Office will use.

Media and Communications Team: Manpower

Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales how many staff are employed in his Department's media and communications team; and how many were employed in 2009.

Peter Hain: The Wales Office's Press Office consists of three full-time members of staff.

PRIME MINISTER

Building Resilience

Bernard Jenkin: To ask the Prime Minister if he will place in the Library a copy of the paper prepared for the Government in 2001 by Dr. Jamie MacIntosh and Mike Granatt CB, entitled, Building Resilience.

Gordon Brown: The findings informed the Government's response to Sir Iain Anderson's review into the lessons of the 2001 foot and mouth outbreak which was published and placed in the Libraries of the House.

CULTURE MEDIA AND SPORT

Departmental Languages

Philip Hammond: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how many  (a) Ministers and  (b) civil servants in his Department received coaching in a foreign language in the last 12 months; what expenditure his Department incurred in providing such coaching; and in what languages such coaching was provided.

Gerry Sutcliffe: The Department for Culture, Media and Sport has not provided coaching in foreign languages to Ministers or civil servants in the Department within the last 12 months.

Departmental Paper

Martin Horwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what  (a) suppliers and  (b) brands of (i) paper and (ii) paper products his Department uses; and what his Department's policy is on the procurement of those materials.

Gerry Sutcliffe: The Department buys its paper through an outsourced stationery supplier, Office Depot, and its paper products through its Facilities Management provider Carillion. For paper the Department uses Evolve, which is 100 per cent. recycled; and for paper products it uses Kimberley-Clark and SCA Hygiene products.
	The Department's procurement policy requires it to use products that are sustainable and which meet current public sector requirements, as specified by the Office of Government Commerce.

Departmental Public Relations

Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport which public relations companies have had contracts with  (a) his Department and  (b) each of its (i) non-departmental public bodies and (ii) executive agencies since 2004.

Gerry Sutcliffe: The Department for Culture Media and Sport has had contracts with Harrison Cowley and Edelman public relations companies since 2004. Our executive agency, The Royal Parks, has had contracts with six companies: Bellenden, Brunswick, Cavendish, Chelgate, Colman Getty and London Communities Agency (LCA).
	The Department does not centrally maintain records on public relations companies in respect of its non-departmental bodies. It would incur disproportionate cost to obtain and collate this information.

Digital Broadcasting: Northern Ireland

Christopher Fraser: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport whether he has had discussions with the government of the Republic of Ireland on plans for the digitisation of radio.

Ben Bradshaw: No discussions have taken place with the Government of the Republic of Ireland regarding switchover to digital radio.

National Lottery: Sports

George Galloway: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what proportion of athletes supported through lottery funding distributed by UK Sport attended fee-paying schools.

Gerry Sutcliffe: UK Sport has advised that as part of their 2009 Athlete Insights survey, all athletes on their World Class Programme were asked for details of their school careers. Of the 75 per cent. that responded to the survey, 22 per cent. stated that they were either at, or had attended an independent school at some point during their education.

FOREIGN AND COMMONWEALTH AFFAIRS

Afghanistan: Politics and Government

Adrian Sanders: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what assessment his Department has made of the extent of corruption in the Afghan government; and what steps his Department is taking to seek to reduce levels of such corruption.

Ivan Lewis: Corruption is endemic throughout society and state. Pervasive corruption within government and the security forces undermines the legitimacy of the Government and corrodes consent. Nearly one-fifth of the Afghan population believe corruption is the country's biggest problem and Afghanistan ranks second to last on Transparency International's Corruption Perception Index. President Karzai made a commitment to tackling corruption in his inauguration speech and again at the London Conference. We expect him to demonstrate this commitment by creating independent institutions that can prevent, detect and take action against corrupt practices in government.
	The UK is a key partner for the Government of Afghanistan on tackling corruption across a range of areas, including on accountability bodies, support to law enforcement and public financial management. We are one of the biggest donors to the Afghan Government's anti-corruption oversight body, High Office of Oversight. We will continue to offer experts from across the Government to support the Afghan Government to tackle corruption.

Broadcasting: Iran

Lembit �pik: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent assessment he has made of the extent to which the outputs of  (a) BBC Persian TV and  (b) other international broadcasters are jammed by the Iranian Government; what assessment he has made of the compatibility of such actions with international agreements; what steps he has taken to bring such jamming to an end; and if he will make a statement.

Ivan Lewis: We are aware that BBC Persian TV and other international broadcasters have been severely disrupted by jamming signals originating from inside Iran. We support the European Parliament's resolution of 10 February which condemned the Iranian authorities' efforts to disrupt media services in breach of their International Telecommunications Union (ITU) obligations. We are continuing to liaise closely with international partners, the ITU and the BBC World Service to seek a resolution to the issue.

Cyprus

Patrick Hall: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what reports he has received on the policy of the Turkish Government on the migration of Turkish nationals from Anatolia to Northern Cyprus; and if he will make a statement.

Chris Bryant: We are aware of reports of the migration of Turkish nationals from Anatolia to northern Cyprus. We have no information about a Turkish Government migration policy to Northern Cyprus.

Departmental Assets

Mark Francois: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs pursuant to the written ministerial statement of 10 February 2010,  Official Report, column 53WS, on Foreign and Commonwealth Office finances, which assets he plans to sell in order to raise the £25 million.

Chris Bryant: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave to the hon. Member for Aylesbury (Mr. Lidington) on 22 February 2010,  Official Report, column 213W.

Departmental Lost Property

Michael Weir: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what equipment owned by his Department has been  (a) stolen and  (b) otherwise unaccounted for in (i) Iraq and (ii) Afghanistan in each of the last three years; and what the cost of such equipment was.

Ivan Lewis: The information is as follows:
	 Iraq
	The following equipment owned by Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) has been stolen, or is otherwise unaccounted for, during the last three years from our posts in Iraq:
	 Basra
	No equipment has been stolen or is otherwise unaccounted for over the last three years.
	 Erbil
	No equipment has been stolen or is otherwise unaccounted for over the last three years.
	 Baghdad
	In 2007 a shipping container was stolen from a transport contractor while en route from Basra to Baghdad. It contained furnishings and vehicle spares. The cost of the furnishings was £20,000. The cost of the vehicle spares was £10,000. A pickup truck was stolen from the embassy compound by a former locally employed member of staff. The cost of the vehicle was $15,000.
	In 2008 no equipment was reported missing or was otherwise unaccounted for.
	In 2009 a pistol worth about £900 was removed from a security contractor's accommodation compound in the International Zone in Baghdad. The contractor's compound was not part of the embassy compound. Security in Baghdad is of paramount concern and we took this matter very seriously. A thorough investigation into the loss was carried out by a Board of Inquiry. As a result procedures were strengthened to ensure that such a loss could not occur again and two individuals faced disciplinary action.
	 Afghanistan
	The following equipment owned by FCO has been stolen, or is otherwise unaccounted for, during the last three years from our posts in Afghanistan:
	 Lashkar Gah
	No equipment has been recorded as stolen or was otherwise unaccounted for over the last three years.
	 Kabul
	In 2007 and 2008, no equipment has been recorded as stolen or was otherwise unaccounted for. However, in 2009 eight sets of body armour totalling £7,600 loaned to visitors were not returned. Steps are being taken to recover them.

Departmental Manpower

Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many of his Department's civil servants work in  (a) England,  (b) Scotland,  (c) Wales and  (d) Northern Ireland.

Chris Bryant: As at 1 February 2010, the Foreign and Commonwealth Office employed 3,588 civil servants based in UK locations. All of these officers are based in England.

Departmental Public Expenditure

William Hague: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs pursuant to the written ministerial statement of 23 February 2010,  Official Report, columns 34-5WS, on departmental expenditure limits, for what legal services resources were requested.

David Miliband: Government departments make a contribution to the costs of the Office of the Parliamentary Counsel (OPC) according to a formula which was introduced in 2004 following a Cabinet decision. Under the formula, departments contribute to the cost of the OPC in proportion to their share of the total volume of enacted legislation in the last five years. The £11,000 is the Foreign and Commonwealth Office's share of £8.8 million held on the Cabinet Office's baseline for OPC. The Cabinet Office also invoices departments for their share of the OPC's costs.

Departmental Public Expenditure

William Hague: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs pursuant to the written ministerial statement of 23 February 2010,  Official Report, columns 34-5WS, on departmental expenditure limits, to what activities the administration costs for modernisation of his Department relate; and under what budget headings those costs were incurred.

David Miliband: This year, Treasury has made available administration budget funds to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO)'s Corporate Services programme from the modernisation fund in order to make working practices more efficient in future. In particular, money has been invested in two restructuring initiatives: in the UK, an early retirement scheme was run for the delegated grades; and overseas, posts have bid for funds to make efficiency gains in their local workforce engaged in corporate services activity. Funds were also used for the FCO Comprehensive Spending Review Value for Money programme. £400,000 was also passed on to UKTI to be spent on their modernisation programme.

Departmental Public Expenditure

William Hague: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs pursuant to the written ministerial statement of 23 February 2010,  Official Report, columns 34-5WS, on departmental expenditure limits, to what programmes the restructuring costs referred to relate; and under what budget headings those costs were incurred.

David Miliband: This year, Treasury has made available administration budget funds to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) in respect of our Comprehensive Spending Review Value for Money programme. Money has been invested in early departure schemes for both the Senior Civil Service and delegated grades.

Departmental Public Expenditure

William Hague: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs pursuant to the written ministerial statement of 10 February 2010,  Official Report, column 54WS, on Foreign and Commonwealth Office finances, what cost savings he plans to implement in relation to his Department's back-office operations; and whether he expects staff redundancies to form part of the cost savings process.

David Miliband: Details of the next stages of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office's programme of streamlining referred to in the statement have yet to be finalised.

Departmental Public Expenditure

William Hague: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs pursuant to the written ministerial statement of 10 February 2010,  Official Report, column 54WS, on Foreign and Commonwealth Office finances, how much he plans to require the  (a) British Council,  (b) BBC World Service and  (c) FCO Services Trading Fund to contribute to his Department's budget.

David Miliband: I refer the right hon. Member to my answer to the hon. Member for Aylesbury (Mr. Lidington) of 22 February 2010,  Official Report, column 214W, namely that the British Council will make available £5 million to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) and that the BBC World Service will make £7.7 million available to the FCO, including an underspend of £4 million in 2009-10. These contributions will not result in permanent reductions in their baseline, but are for 2010-11 only. FCO Services Trading Fund will make a special dividend payment to the FCO of £3 million in financial year 2010-11.

Departmental Public Expenditure

William Hague: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs pursuant to the written ministerial statement of 10 February 2010,  Official Report, column 54WS, on Foreign and Commonwealth Office finances, what annual limit will apply to the funds available to his Department under the foreign exchange adjustment account; and if he will make a statement.

David Miliband: For the financial year 2010-11, £20 million will be available as the Foreign and Commonwealth Office's foreign exchange adjustment account. No arrangements have been made for departmental budgets for financial years beyond this, as such arrangements will depend on the outcome of a future comprehensive spending review.

Departmental Public Expenditure

William Hague: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs pursuant to the written ministerial statement of 10 February 2010,  Official Report, column 54WS, on Foreign and Commonwealth Office finances, how the operation of the new foreign exchange adjustment account differs from previous arrangements to manage his Department's exposure to exchange rate movements; and if he will make a statement.

David Miliband: The foreign exchange adjustment account will be a departmental unallocated provision which the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) will draw on as necessary to manage the impact of foreign exchange fluctuations. It is not a return to the Overseas Price Movements Mechanism under which the FCO budget was adjusted from the Treasury Reserve to reflect foreign exchange rate movements.

Departmental Public Expenditure

William Hague: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs pursuant to the written ministerial statement of 10 February 2010,  Official Report, column 54WS, on Foreign and Commonwealth Office finances, what assets will be sold to make funding available for his Department's budget.

David Miliband: I refer the right hon. Member to my answer to the hon. Member for Aylesbury (Mr. Lidington) of 22 February 2010,  Official Report, column 213W, namely that the Foreign and Commonwealth Office publishes details of disposals quarterly in a letter to the Foreign Affairs Committee. For commercial reasons and in order to realise maximum value from disposals, we do not publish details of planned disposals in advance.

Departmental Wines

Philip Hammond: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how much his Department spent on its wine cellar in each of the last five years.

Chris Bryant: The Government Hospitality wine cellar provides for all Government Departments. For the period 2004-08, I refer the hon. Member to the reply given by my hon. Friend the Member for Lincoln (Gillian Merron) to the hon. Member for Welwyn Hatfield (Grant Shapps) on 20 April 2009,  Official Report, column 510W.
	The figure for 2008-09 was £121,939.

Diplomatic Service: Manpower

Andrew MacKinlay: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what consultation took place with each of the Civil Service unions on proposals to replace management officers in overseas missions with locally-engaged staff; on what dates such consultation took place; and if he will place in the Library a copy of the report on the outcome of such consultation.

Chris Bryant: The trade union side (TUS), including representatives from those trade unions officially recognised by the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO), were consulted several times informally between 8 June 2009 and 29 January 2010. That informal consultation continues.
	The TUS side were consulted formally at Whitley Council meetings on 17 July and 18 August. The TUS also put their views about the localisation programme to the FCO Whitley Council Joint General Purposes Committee on 24 September 2009.

Egypt: Christianity

Adrian Sanders: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent representations his Department has made to the government of Egypt on the treatment of Coptic Christians in that country.

Ivan Lewis: The Government condemn all instances of discrimination and persecution of individuals and groups because of their religion or belief. At Egypt's Universal Periodic Review in February 2010 we encouraged further efforts by the Egyptian government and others in authority to reduce and prevent discrimination on the grounds of an individual's religion or belief. We have also raised the shooting dead of seven people outside a church in Naga Hammadi with the Egyptian government at ministerial level and received assurances of Egypt's commitment to protecting its Christian population. We welcome the Egyptian Government's pursuit and arrest of the perpetrators of the crime.
	The protection of human rights, including freedom of religion, is a central component of Egypt's ongoing dialogue with the EU.

G20: Public Relations

Nick Hurd: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs with reference to the answer of 16 September 2009,  Official Report, column 2232W, on G20: public relations, what the cost to the public purse was of the external contracted staff; and from which companies they were contracted.

Chris Bryant: A temporary unit was created within the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) to support posts across the world in their engagement with stakeholders overseas, help organise local events during the run up to the summit, as well as providing information for the London G20 summit website.
	The unit was staffed by FCO and temporary staff with specialist project co-ordination and website development skills. Temporary staff included a project co-ordinator and two events delivery co-ordinators hired from PA Consulting at a cost of £166,934. Two digital editors and a media co-ordinator were also hired through COI GovGap at a cost of £90,400. No external public relations or public affairs firms (consultancies) were contracted to provide support for the London G20 summit.

HIV Infection

David Borrow: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what steps his Department is taking to fulfil its commitments under the Aids strategy, Achieving Universal Access, in  (a) Cameroon,  (b) Cote d'Ivoire,  (c) Thailand and  (d) Russia.

Ivan Lewis: The Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO)'s role under the Government's Achieving Universal Access HIV strategy is primarily focused on advocacy and lobbying to support the strategy's aims. Our work is targeted towards those countries in which issues of gender inequality, stigma and discrimination are stopping people from taking up preventive services and testing, disclosing their status, and seeking treatment and care.
	In Cameroon, we have been fighting institutionalised and societal stigma against people living with HIV/AIDS through a project called 'Rights of AIDS Sufferers', run in the North West region. It has encouraged employers and socio-cultural groups to adopt specific policies that protect the rights of HIV-infected workers. The work of the project was reported nationally on TV and in the print media.
	Our embassy in Moscow is supporting an Oxfam project aimed at improving access and quality of health care for poor and marginalized groups, including those suffering from HIV and AIDS. The project strengthens the role of a coalition of non-governmental organisations (NGOs) in holding government accountable for access to and quality of health care. The two year project covers seven regions of Russia. Some of the interim outcomes include an increased awareness by citizens of their rights and the involvement of NGOs in helping to draft regional legislation on accessible health care, with the NGO focusing on the poor and vulnerable.
	HIV is a global issue and the FCO also works multilaterally for global leadership and effective funding for HIV prevention, treatment and care, including in the countries listed. The UK works on the UNAIDS Programme Coordinating Board to push for improved human rights for at-risk communities and vulnerable people. For example, in November, the UK worked successfully with the Eastern Europe Constituency and others to protect financial resources for a HIV/AIDS prevention programme in Russia, targeted at high risk groups.
	In addition to our multilateral work, our Posts have been active in Sub-Saharan Africa and South-East Asia, although no specific activities have been undertaken under the Strategy in Cote d'Ivoire or Thailand.
	Thailand has been recognised as a visionary leader in the AIDS response, and our embassy in Bangkok is currently reassessing what action it might take, under the strategy, to support the Thai Government's efforts.

India: Christianity

Adrian Sanders: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent representations he has made to the Government of India on the treatment of Christians in Orissa State.

Ivan Lewis: We maintain a dialogue with the Indian authorities on these issues. On 2-5 February a member of our High Commission in New Delhi participated in an EU delegation to Orissa. The EU delegation met Government and police officials, civil society and victims in Bhubaneswar and Kandhamal. They noted some progress on rehabilitation and resettlement. They also determined that the central government in New Delhi were providing basic financial compensation for some of the victims of the 2008 violence. The local authorities continue to work to address displacement and justice issues. The EU also identified cross-community peace-building initiatives and improving the capacity of victims lawyers as important areas to address.

Niger: Politics and Government

Gregory Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs whether he has had discussions with representatives of the African Union and the government of Niger on the safety of people travelling to and from Niger following the coup in that country.

Ivan Lewis: The safety of UK nationals is of primary importance to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO). We received information from a variety of sources including international partners at the time of the coup and adjusted our Niger travel advice accordingly, available on the FCO website. No harm came to any UK national in Niger during or after the time of the coup. The FCO will continue to monitor the situation closely.

Nuclear Weapons: Proliferation

Dai Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs when he last met the  (a) Parliamentary Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament (CND) Group and  (b) Top Level Group of Parliamentarians for Multilateral Nuclear Disarmament and Non-proliferation to discuss nuclear non-proliferation and nuclear disarmament.

Ivan Lewis: My right. hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary last met and discussed nuclear non-proliferation and nuclear disarmament with the Top Level Group of Parliamentarians for Multilateral Nuclear Disarmament and Non-proliferation on 10 February 2010. He has not met recently with the Parliamentary Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament Group.

WORK AND PENSIONS

Carer's Allowance: Gwent

Don Touhig: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many people in Islwyn constituency who are ineligible for income support  (a) are entitled to and  (b) receive carer's allowance.

Jonathan R Shaw: The information is not available in the format requested; it is not possible to say for what reason a claimant getting carers allowance might not be getting income support.

Departmental Cleaning Services

Paul Rowen: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions whether all contracted cleaners for her Department's buildings in London are paid at the level of the London living wage or a higher level.

Jonathan R Shaw: holding answer 24 February 2010
	The Department encourages all of its suppliers to maintain good working conditions for their staff but their actual terms and conditions are a matter for them.

Departmental Consultants

Theresa May: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how much her Department spent on external recruitment consultants in 2009;

Nick Hurd: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how much her Department and its agencies spent on external recruitment consultants in the last 12 months.

Jonathan R Shaw: The Department and its agencies spent £10.4 million on external recruitment consultants in the last 12 months.
	This exceptional figure reflects the need to recruit over 15,000 additional staff into Jobcentre Plus in a very short period of time to meet the extra demands created by the recession. I expect the figure for 2010-11 to be substantially lower.

Departmental Contracts

Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions by what mechanisms she plans to ensure that prime contractors in respect of work choice programmes include third sector and small and medium-sized enterprises as sub-contractors in their bids for contracts.

Jonathan R Shaw: holding answer 2 March 2010
	Prime contractors will be expected to ensure that DWP provision is joined up with local partnership arrangements, working with smaller, specialist providers many of whom will be Third Sector or voluntary organisations dealing with disadvantaged groups in the local area.
	Two networking events were held in September 2009 to facilitate bringing together smaller specialist organisations and potential Work Choice Prime providers. Nearly 600 people attended these events.

Departmental NDPBs

Bob Spink: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions for how many non-departmental public bodies her Department is responsible.

Jonathan R Shaw: Information on the number of non-departmental public bodies (NDPBs) sponsored by my Department is published in the annual Cabinet Office report-Public Bodies. Public Bodies 2009 is available online at:
	http://www.civilservice.gov.uk/about/resources/public-bodies.aspx
	Copies have been placed in the Libraries of the House.

Departmental Plants

Theresa May: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how much her Department spent on pot plants in 2009;

David Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how much  (a) her Department and  (b) its agencies has spent on pot plants in (i) 2007-08, (ii) 2008-09 and (iii) 2009-10.

Jonathan R Shaw: DWP occupies all of its properties under the terms of a facilities management contract under which it pays an overall charge in return for fully-serviced accommodation including, where appropriate, the provision of interior plants. It is not charged separately for any elements of this contract.

Departmental Public Consultation

Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many citizens' juries or summits have been hosted by her Department since October 2008; on what date each event took place; and which Ministers were present at each event.

Jim Knight: There is no central record of any citizen juries having been hosted by the Department for Work and Pensions since October 2008. However, a wide range of citizen engagement activities are regularly conducted across the Department. These are designed to ensure that citizens' needs are placed at the forefront of improving service delivery and in policy development.
	The following large conferences, aimed at 100 or more delegates, have been organised by the Department for Work and Pensions and addressed by its Ministers since October 2008:
	The Employment Summit took place on 12 January 2009, and was hosted by the Prime Minister, the Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities and Skills, and the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions.
	Department for Work and Pensions' Annual Forum, London, 16 July 2009, for organisations that work with its customers. The Parliamentary Under-Secretary at the Department for Work and Pensions attended.
	Welfare Reform Green Paper Consultation events, in Edinburgh on 9 October 2008 and Newcastle on 24 October 2008. Both were attended by the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions.
	Backing Young Britain: Young People's Summit on 2 September 2009. This was hosted by the Prime Minister, Secretary of State for Work and Pensions and Mr. Iain Wright, Parliamentary Under-Secretary at the Department for Children, Schools and Families.
	Grandparents Summit, a cross-Government event held on 12 November 2009. In attendance were the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions and the Parliamentary Secretary for Equality at the Government Equalities Office.

Disability Living Allowance

Mark Harper: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many awards of disability living allowance were made to people whose main disabling condition was cancer in the latest period for which figures are available; and what the average waiting time was for such an award to be made in that period.

Jonathan R Shaw: holding answer 10 February 2010
	The following table provides information on cases in payment where the main disabling condition is recorded as malignant disease and which includes cancer, carcinoma and leukaemia.
	We do not record the average waiting time for a disability living allowance award where the main disabling condition was cancer.
	
		
			  Disability cases in payment where the main disabling condition is recorded as malignant disease, May 2009 
			   Number 
			 Total 54,200 
			  Notes 1. Figures are rounded to the nearest 100 and have been uprated to be consistent with Work and Pensions Longitudinal Study data. 2. Figures show the number of people in receipt of an allowance, and exclude people with entitlement where the payment has been suspended, for example if they are in hospital. 3. Where more than one disability is present only the main disabling condition is recorded. 4. A diagnosed medical condition does not mean that someone is automatically entitled to disability living allowance. Entitlement is dependent on an assessment of how much help someone needs with personal care and/or mobility because of their disability. These statistics are only collected for administrative purposes.  Source: Department for Work and Pensions, Information Directorate, 5 per cent. sample.

Employment

Theresa May: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what forecasts of employment levels have been  (a) made and  (b) used by her Department since 2007.

Jim Knight: The Department for Work and Pensions does not produce a forecast of employment levels of its own.
	The Department draws on a number of elements of the Budget and pre-Budget report economic forecasts for planning purposes. These forecasts are detailed, along with a discussion of the current state of the economy, in the Budget and pre-Budget report. The latest forecast was set out in Annex A of the 2009 pre-Budget report (Cm 7747), published on 9 December 2009.
	A copy of the pre-Budget report (Cm 7747) is available in the Library.

Employment Schemes: Young People

Paul Rowen: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what programmes her Department has to assist young people into employment in Rochdale and the North West; and if she will make a statement.

Jim Knight: The Government have implemented a substantial package of national measures to address youth unemployment, which are helping young people in the North West region and Rochdale as well as elsewhere. Young people aged 16 to 24 can access apprenticeships, internships, mentoring and work experience through Backing Young Britain. Jobseekers aged 18 to 24 who have been unemployed for six months are guaranteed the offer of a job, training or work experience through the Young Person's Guarantee via provision that includes the Future Jobs Fund, Routes into Work, Work Focused Training, and the Community Task Force, as well as internships and access to help with self employment. From April taking up one of these options will become mandatory.
	We have so far agreed to fund 17,078 jobs under the Future Jobs Fund in the North West.

Equality 2025

Mark Harper: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions pursuant to the answer of 9 February 2010,  Official Report, column 863W, on the Review of Equality 2025, on what date  (a) the report was completed and  (b) Ministers of her Department received the report; how many officials of her Department are responsible for considering and implementing the report's recommendations; and if she will make a statement.

Jonathan R Shaw: holding answer 25 February 2010
	The initial recommendations from the review were submitted to the Minister for Disabled People for approval in September 2009 and were accepted by him. Following the written ministerial statement to Parliament on 10 December 2009,  Official Report, columns 40-42WS, the recommendations were published on the website of the Office for Disability Issues. The report was finalised on 23 February 2010, following detailed work to ensure compliance with data protection requirements, and sent to the Minister for Disabled People.
	The Secretary to Equality 2025 has been involved in supporting Equality 2025 with implementing these recommendations, with input, as appropriate, from the Director and Deputy Director of the Office for Disability Issues. Work on implementing the recommendations is ongoing and will be completed by late June 2010.

Health Services: Isle of Man

Andrew MacKinlay: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions for what reasons her Department has not replied to the letter from the Government of the Isle of Man sent in 2009, requesting advice on the Isle of Man's desire to negotiate a bilateral health agreement with the Scottish Executive; and if she will make a statement.

Helen Goodman: My Department has no record of receiving any such letter from the Government of the Isle of Man in 2009 concerning its negotiation of a bilateral health agreement with the Scottish Executive. If my hon. Friend would care to supply further details of the letter, I will look into the matter urgently.

Incapacity Benefit

Mark Harper: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what assessment she has made of the effectiveness of sanctions that have been imposed on existing claimants of incapacity benefit; and what the most common reasons are for the imposition of sanctions on claimants.

Jonathan R Shaw: holding answer 26 February 2010
	The purpose of sanctions is to encourage compliance with the requirement to take part in work-focused interviews. The only reason for imposing sanctions on claimants is if they fail to take part in a work-focused interview, without good cause.
	From the assessments which the Department has made of the effectiveness of the sanctions regime, as part of the extension to existing customers in Jobcentre Plus-led Pathways districts over 2005-06, it is clear the use of sanctions had a positive impact on attendance at work-focused interviews. However, customer views on the appropriateness of the use of sanctions were mixed.
	The Department has published two research reports on the experiences of existing customers and these include a discussion regarding sanctions:
	Pathways to Work: Extension to some existing customers: Early findings from qualitative research, Policy Studies Institute, Department for Work and Pensions report no. 323, 2006,
	http://research.dwp.gov.uk/asd/asd5/rports2005-2006/rrep323.pdf
	Pathways to Work: Extension to existing customers (matched case study), National Centre for Social Research, Department for Work and Pensions report no. 418, 2007,
	http://research.dwp.gov.uk/asd/asd5/rports2007-2008/rrep418.pdf
	Copies of both reports have been placed in the Library.

Incapacity Benefit

Mark Harper: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many claimants of incapacity benefit were sanctioned in each of the last 10 years; and what the monetary value was of sanctions imposed in each of those years.

Jonathan R Shaw: holding answer 26 February 2010
	The Department does not publish data on the number of people who have been sanctioned who claim incapacity benefit; such data could be provided only at disproportionate cost. The same is true for those customers in receipt of employment and support allowance and income support.

New Deal Schemes

Mark Harper: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions 
	(1)  what forecast the Government made of the number of expected referrals to Flexible New Deal phase one providers in each region in each of the first six months of its operation;
	(2)  how many customers have been referred to Flexible New Deal phase one providers in each region in each month to the end of January 2010.

Jim Knight: holding answer 22 February 2010
	 The information is not available in the format requested. Delivery of the flexible new deal (FND) started from 5 October 2009 in phase 1 areas.
	The Department is working to guidelines set by the UK Statistics Authority to ensure that we are able to publish statistics that meet the high quality standards at the earliest opportunity. Further information on the timing and scope of the release of FND statistics will be made available through the Department's website.

Pensioners: Poverty

Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what additional assistance her Department provided to pensioners during the recent recession.

Angela Eagle: The Government provided a range of additional support to pensioners through the recent economic downturn and continues to provide support during the early stages of economic recovery.
	In his pre-Budget report statement on 24 November 2008 the Chancellor announced the intention to give every pensioner a one-off payment of £60 on top of the regular £10 Christmas bonus received in December 2008. This was paid as a one-off increase to the Christmas bonus for 2008 only and was paid to all qualifying recipients of the Christmas bonus.
	The payment provided additional direct financial support to help vulnerable groups through the economic downturn. In total the additional £60 payments cost around £900 million.
	The Government made an additional payment alongside the winter fuel payment for winters 2008-09 and 2009-10 of £50 for households with someone aged 60-79 and £100 for those with someone aged 80 or over. This means the winter fuel payments have been £250 and £400 respectively which provides a significant contribution towards an older person's winter fuel bill. Cold weather payments for the winter of 2008-09 and 2009-10 have also been increased from £8.50 to £25.00 providing additional support to the most vulnerable. With the exception of those living in certain accommodation such as care homes, all pensioners on pension credit will qualify for a cold weather payment when the average temperature has been recorded as, or is forecast to be 0° C or below over seven consecutive days at the weather station linked to the eligible customer's postcode.
	In April 2010, the Government have committed to increase the basic state pension by 2.5 per cent. This commitment, first given in 2001, was confirmed in the Chancellor's 2009 pre-Budget report, despite the negative growth for the September 2009 retail prices index, providing a real-terms boost to basic state pension. This means that in 2010-11, pensioners will have seen a long-term real increase of 12 per cent. in their basic state pension, which is over £10 per week, since 1997.
	The Chancellor has also confirmed that from April 2010 the poorest pensioners will also benefit from an above indexation increase in the standard minimum guarantee in pension credit, an increase of £2.60 a week for single people and £3.95 for couples. This means that, from April 2010, no single pensioner need live on less than £132.60 a week and no couple on less than £202.40. That is a real terms increase of more than a third for the poorest pensioners since 1997. The 2 per cent. increase ensures that the vast majority of the poorest pensioners will be able to see the full benefit of the 2.5 per cent. increase in the basic state pension.
	In order to help those pensioners who receive income from savings and who may have been affected by lower interest rates, the Government have increased the threshold in pension credit (and housing and council tax benefit for those who have attained the qualifying age for pension credit) from £6,000 to £10,000 from November 2009, so that pensioners can have up to £10,000 without it affecting their benefits.
	This change will benefit around 500,000 pensioners and will mean around 88 per cent. of pension credit recipients will have all of their capital ignored in their pension credit assessment.
	The Government also increased ISA limits up to £10,200 for people aged 50 and over from 6 October 2009.
	Since November 2008, the Government have maintained the standard interest rate used to calculate support for mortgage interest at 6.08 per cent. to provide support for homeowners on pension credit who receive help with their mortgage. In his pre-Budget report on 9 December 2009, the Chancellor announced that the rate of 6.08 per cent. would be maintained for a further six months, to provide continued support to these customers.
	The Government also launched a tax back awareness campaign in autumn 2009 contacting all those in receipt of pension credit to encourage them to claim back tax they may have overpaid on their savings income and, where possible, register to receive interest on their savings tax-free in future.

Social Security Benefits

Danny Alexander: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what estimate she has made of the monetary value of unclaimed benefits of each type in  (a) the Highlands,  (b) Scotland and  (c) England and Wales in each of the last three years.

Helen Goodman: Estimates of unclaimed benefits are available for Great Britain only; they are not available for the geographical areas requested.
	The latest estimates of unclaimed benefit amounts for Great Britain are published in the report Income Related Benefits Estimates of Take-Up in 2007-08 a copy of which is available in the Library.

Social Security Benefits: Fibromyalgia

Madeleine Moon: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what percentage of applicants for disability living allowance diagnosed with fibromyalgia have had their application approved.

Jonathan R Shaw: The information is not available, as data on diagnosis for disallowed claims are not collected. This means that it is not possible to determine what percentage of applicants who listed Fibromyalgia on their claim form were allowed or disallowed.
	The amount of disability living allowance someone receives, depends on how much help they need with personal care and/or mobility. It is not dependent on whether they have a specific diagnosis or medical condition. For example, a customer would not be awarded disability living allowance on the basis of a diagnosis of Fibromyalgia. The decision would be based upon their care/supervision needs and on the help they need to get around as a result of the any associated physical or psychological complications.

Social Security Benefits: Fibromyalgia

Madeleine Moon: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what information her Department has issued to staff of the Disability and Carers Service with regard to fibromyalgia.

Jonathan R Shaw: There is no specific internal guidance for Decision Makers about fibromyalgia.
	Staff use the Decision Makers' Guide and the NHS Choices website, and specific advice is obtained on a case-by-case basis from health care professionals working under contract within the Department.

State Retirement Pensions

Steve Webb: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions 
	(1)  with reference to the answer of 23 June 2009,  Official Report, column 817W, on state retirement pensions, how much her Department has paid out in such lump sums to date; how many people have received such payments; when she expects to complete the exercise; and if she will make a statement;
	(2)  what her most recent estimate is of the number of cases of pensioners potentially entitled to lump sum payments of backdated retirement pension through payment of Class 3 national insurance contributions to take account of pensioners.

Angela Eagle: holding answers 1 and 3 March 2010
	The Department has contacted 23,884 women with potential to benefit from paying class 3 national insurance contributions. For the period up to 22 February 2010, 12,924 women have received lump sums of backdated pension, totalling £10,138,932.00. Of these, 871 also benefited from arrears of state pension after correction of their home responsibilities protection (HRP).
	In addition, as part of this exercise, 2,360 customers were paid arrears of state pension resulting only from correction of their HRP. The total arrears paid resulting from correction of HRP is £1,488,244.
	The exercise has officially ended but customers have, by law, until 5 April 2010 to contact the Department so this figure may increase.

Vauxhall

Kate Hoey: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions if she will set out, with statistical evidence relating as closely as possible to Vauxhall constituency, the effects on the constituency of changes to her Department's policies since 1997.

Jonathan R Shaw: As the biggest delivery Department in the UK, DWP makes a difference to millions of people every day, helping them to lead safer, fairer and more rewarding lives that are free from poverty. The policies that we have introduced since 1997 have aimed to give people more choice and control over their lives. Through our welfare reform programme, we are committed to providing personalised support to everyone who needs it so they have the opportunity to get into and remain in work.
	 Support to find work
	Through Jobcentre Plus, we are promoting work as the best form of welfare for people of working age. Since 1997, the number of people unemployed in Vauxhall has decreased by 27 per cent. to 5,067, and the number unemployed for more than one year has decreased by 71 per cent. to 810. Since 1997 to May 2009 the number of lone parents claiming income support in Vauxhall has decreased by 43 per cent. to 3,090.
	Our New Deal programmes have helped lone parents, the young unemployed, the long-term unemployed, disabled people, the over 50s and partners of unemployed people to move from benefit into work. Since their inception over 2.2 million people in the UK have found work with the support of the New Deal, and 7,510 have been helped in Vauxhall.
	 Support for children
	We introduced a target to halve child poverty by 2010-11 on the way to eradicating it by 2020. Poverty is measured using a headline indicator of the proportion of children in households with an income below 60 per cent. of contemporary household median income before housing costs. This is in line with international best practice.
	Statistics on the numbers of children living in poverty are not available at the constituency level, but the latest information for the inner London area shows that the proportion of children in poverty fell from 39 per cent. to 27 per cent. since 1997.
	 Support for older people
	Since 1997 our strategy has been to target extra help at the poorest pensioners while providing a solid foundation of support for all.
	This year we will be spending over £13 billion more on pensioners than if we had continued with the policies that were in place in 1997. Around half of that money will go to the poorest third of pensioners.
	In 1997 the poorest pensioners, who received income support, lived on £69 a week (£98 in today's prices). Today pension credit, which was introduced in 2003, means no pensioner needs to live on less than £130 a week, £198.45 for couples. As of May 2009, 5,260 pensioners in Vauxhall are receiving pension credit.
	In 2007-08 there were 900,000 fewer pensioners living in relative poverty in the UK compared to 1998-99 (measured as below 60 per cent. of contemporary median household income after housing costs). Statistics on the numbers of pensioners living in relative poverty are not available at the constituency level, but the latest information for the inner London area shows that the proportion of pensioners in poverty has fallen from 42 per cent. to 29 per cent. since 1997.
	Pensioners in the UK also benefit from a range of additional support such as the winter fuel payment which this winter is worth £250 for households aged between 60-79 and £400 for households aged 80 or over. These payments provide vital reassurance to older people that they can afford to turn up their heating during cold weather. Prior to winter 1997-98 less than £60 million was spent helping pensioners meet their fuel bills-this year we will be spending around £2.7 billion on winter fuel payments alone. In 2008-09, 11,950 people aged 60 and over benefited from winter fuel payments in Vauxhall.
	We have also taken steps to strengthen and protect the private pensions system to ensure people can continue to have confidence to save for their future through the establishment of the Pensions Protection Fund, the Financial Assistance Scheme and a more powerful and proactive pensions regulator.
	The protection system ensures that, unlike in 1997, people aren't left without a pension even in the event that their employer becomes insolvent.
	In total 423 people in the London area are receiving compensation from the Pension Protection Fund (data not available at constituency level).
	We have also taken forward a radical package of pension reforms in the Pensions Acts of 2007 and 2008 which will deliver a fairer and more generous state pension and extend the opportunity of workplace pension saving to millions, many for the first time.
	The state pension reforms begin to come into effect from 2010 and will mean around three quarters of women reaching state pension age in 2010 are expected to qualify for a full basic state pension compared to half without reform.
	 Support for disabled people and carers
	Since 2001, we have significantly extended and improved civil rights for disabled people in areas such as employment, education, access to goods and services and transport. Disabled people in Vauxhall will have benefited from these improvements. The Welfare Reform Act 2009 contains powers to increase choice and control for disabled adults, including disabled parents, enabling them to choose how certain state support is used to meet their individual needs. Older and less well-off carers are receiving extra help through the provisions within the National Carers Strategy.

Work Capability Assessment

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions for what reasons all three point scoring descriptors have been removed from the work capability assessment; and if she will make a statement.

Jonathan R Shaw: In October 2008, with the introduction of employment and support allowance, the work capability assessment replaced the personal capability assessment for all new claims. The new assessment was developed in consultation with representative groups and medical experts, to provide a more accurate assessment of an individual's functional capability in the context of a modern workplace, who concluded that the three point descriptors did not add up to an overall level of functional limitation at which it is unreasonable to expect a person to work. They reflect the sort of condition that any individual can expect to experience, without having any significant functional limitation.

DEFENCE

Afghanistan: Peacekeeping Operations

Bernard Jenkin: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what estimate he has made of the average number of flying hours for each  (a) Apache and  (b) Chinook machine in Afghanistan in each of the last three years.

Bob Ainsworth: I will not provide details of the number of flying hours that our deployed helicopters in Afghanistan have completed, either by specific airframes or by the fleet as a whole, for operational security reasons; the release of this information would, or would be likely to, prejudice the capability, effectiveness, or security of our armed forces.
	Since November 2006, there has been an increase of nearly 140 per cent. in all UK battlefield helicopter flying hours. We will enhance our helicopter capability further, and will ensure that it continues to meet operational requirements. For example, we are converting eight Chinook Mk 3 aircraft to a support helicopter role and this will allow us to deliver more Chinooks to Afghanistan.

Armed Forces: Housing

Willie Rennie: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence 
	(1)  how much his Department has paid for improvements and modernisation of residential dwellings in each year since Annington Homes acquired its former housing stock;
	(2)  how much his Department paid Annington Homes in  (a) rent and  (b) maintenance costs for residential dwellings in each year since the company acquired his Department's former properties.

Kevan Jones: While the Ministry of Defence (MOD) retains responsibility for the upgrade, improvement and maintenance of properties leased from Annington Homes Ltd. (AHL), the expenditure is not centrally recorded nor separately identifiable from that on other Service Family Accommodation (SFA) in England and Wales or Great Britain.
	However, I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave on 11 January 2010,  Official Report, column 401W, which gave details of the total maintenance and upgrade expenditure on SFA in Great Britain. We have been able to break this down further as follows:
	
		
			  Upgrading SFA in England and Wales 
			   Expenditure (£ million) 
			 2001-02 n/a 
			 2002-03 n/a 
			 2003-04 8.3 
			 2004-05 6.0 
			 2005-06 4.4 
			 2006-07 11.4 
			 2007-08 13.9 
			 2008-09 27.4 
		
	
	Most SFA properties in England and Wales were sold to AHL by the previous Conservative Government in 1996, the majority of which were immediately leased back by the MOD to house entitled service personnel and their families. The annual rent paid to AHL in each year was:
	
		
			  Year commencing  Rent (£ million) 
			 November 1996 72.3 
			 June 1997 110.6 
			 June 1998 108.6 
			 June 1999 109.7 
			 June 2000 115.7 
			 June 2001 119.2 
			 June 2002 127.6 
			 June 2003 129.8 
			 June 2004 131.9 
			 June 2005 138.1 
			 June 2006 143.5 
			 June 2007 148.6 
			 June 2008 150.3 
			 June 2009 to December 2009 113.0 
		
	
	The Department does not pay any maintenance costs to AHL.

Army: Lost Property

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence 
	(1)  how many pieces of protective eye wear have been reported  (a) lost and  (b) stolen from the armed forces in each of the last 12 months;
	(2)  how many army uniforms have been reported  (a) lost and  (b) stolen in each of the last 12 months.;
	(3)  how many sets of army gloves have been reported  (a) lost and  (b) stolen in each of the last 12 months.;
	(4)  how many army flares have been reported  (a) lost and  (b) stolen in each of the last 12 months;
	(5)  how many army knives have been reported  (a) lost and  (b) stolen in each of the last 12 months.;
	(6)  how many army ration packs have been reported  (a) lost and  (b) stolen in each of the last 12 months;
	(7)  how many army medical kits have been reported  (a) lost and  (b) stolen in each of the last 12 months;
	(8)  how many army radios have been reported  (a) lost and  (b) stolen in each of the last 12 months;
	(9)  how many pieces of body armour have been reported  (a) lost and  (b) stolen from the Army in each of the last 12 months;
	(10)  how many army helmets have been reported  (a) lost and  (b) stolen in each of the last 12 months.

Kevan Jones: This information is not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Army: Lost Property

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many army rocket launchers have been reported  (a) lost and  (b) stolen in each of the last 12 months.

Kevan Jones: No rocket launchers have been reported as lost or stolen during the last 12 months.

Army: Lost Property

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many grenades have been reported  (a) lost and  (b) stolen from the Army in each of the last 12 months.

Kevan Jones: No grenades have been reported as lost or stolen during the last 12 months.

Army: Lost Property

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many army night vision goggles have been reported  (a) lost and  (b) stolen in each of the last 12 months.

Kevan Jones: No night vision goggles have been centrally reported as stolen in the past 12 months but 21 have been reported lost. These include helmet mounted systems and those designed for use in military vehicles.

Army: National Bullying Helpline

Fiona Mactaggart: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what contacts the Army has had with the National Bullying Helpline since 2004; and whether the Army has made any payments to  (a) the National Bullying Helpline and  (b) HR and Diversity Management Limited in that period.

Kevan Jones: The Army has no relationship with either the National Bullying Helpline or HR and Diversity Management. The armed forces have a well-publicised Confidential Support Line which is run by the Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen and Families Association-Forces Help charity, which is, independent of the Chain of Command.
	Individuals within the Army are, free to contact either the National Bullying Helpline or HR and Diversity Management should they wish to do so. While it is possible that either organisation may have made contact with Army units on individual cases, this information is not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Cadet Forces

Michael Gove: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many  (a) school-aged children in maintained schools and  (b) other school-aged children were enrolled in community cadet forces in the latest year for which figures are available;

Kevan Jones: The information required is not held in the format requested. The data provided reflects only the category of 'State' schools (noting that for the purposes of Combined Cadet Force (CCF) data collated by MOD, all other schools are categorised as Independent).
	As at 1 April 2009, and subject to the caveats mentioned above, there were 7,579 School pupils who were members of their State School's Combined Cadet Force. However, given that the majority of Cadets are members of a community-based Cadet unit, it is estimated that some 90,000 cadets are state school pupils. In the same timeframe there were some 130,000 cadets overall. It should also be noted that there are 25 known partnerships where Independent Schools with CCFs provide cadet places to neighbouring State schools; for these partnerships it is not possible to identify the numbers of State School cadets.
	Full statistics on cadet forces can be found on the Defence Analytical Services and Advice organisation's website in their Tri-Service Publication (TSP) 7:
	www.dasa.mod.uk

Defence Equipment

Liam Fox: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many  (a) rifles,  (b) mortars,  (c) machine guns and  (d) artillery weapons were (i) in service with the Army and (ii) available for use by the Army in operations on the latest date for which figures are available.

Quentin Davies: The in-service figures for rifles, mortars, machine guns and artillery weapons are provided in the following table. Availability data for rifles, mortars and machine guns is not held centrally. I am withholding information on the number of artillery weapons currently available on operations, as its disclosure would, or would be likely to prejudice the capability, effectiveness or security of the armed forces.
	
		
			   In  s ervice  (n umber ) 
			 SA80 A2 180,000 
			 SSI/338 561 
			 Carbine 1414 
			   
			  Machine Guns  
			 HMG 1,100 
			 GMG 350 
			 GPMG 8450 
			 LMG 4500 
			   
			  Mortars  
			 81 MM Mortar 500 
			 60MM B Mortar 115 
			 60MM H Mortar 102 
			   
			  Artillery  
			 AS90 116 
			 105 mm Lt Gun 125 
			 MLRS 36 
			 Stormer SP HVM 60 
			 Rapier FSV Launcher 32

Departmental Buildings

Sarah Teather: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the  (a) area and  (b) estimated value is of (i) vacant and (ii) occupied office space (A) owned and (B) rented by his Department.

Kevan Jones: Within Defence, the civil office estate is defined as that which is capable of being shared with other Government Departments. Information in respect of these offices will take some time to collect and verify. I will write to the hon. Member as soon as possible.
	Other office space outside this definition includes facilities within armed forces establishments and buildings. This information is not recorded and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
	 Substantive answer from Kevan Jones to Sarah Teather:
	In my answer of 14 January (Official Report, column 1103W) I undertook to write to you with details of the area and estimated value of vacant and occupied office space owned and rented by this Department.
	Within the defence estate, the civil office estate is broadly defined as that which is capable of being shared with other Government Departments. On this basis the details are as follows:
	
		
			  Owned 
			   Square metre space  Equivalent rental value (£ million) 
			 Occupied 345,000 21.4 
			 Vacant 1,800 0.2 
		
	
	
		
			  Rented 
			   Square metre space  Total rental value  (£ million) 
			 Occupied 80,307 14.6 
			 Vacant 2,294 0.89 
		
	
	Office space outside this definition includes facilities within Armed Forces establishments and space used as offices (perhaps temporarily) within buildings of a different type such as hangars on barracks.

Departmental Paper

Martin Horwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what  (a) suppliers and  (b) brands of (i) paper and (ii) paper products his Department uses; and what his Department's policy is on the procurement of those materials.

Quentin Davies: The Ministry of Defence (MOD) procures the majority of its paper and some paper products from Office Depot UK Ltd. under an enabling contract that was awarded to the company in 2007. Paper products are also procured from Lyreco UK Ltd under a similar enabling contract for the supply of stationery items. Specialist photographic paper is supplied by Calumet.
	The brands of paper available under the Office Depot contract are: Office Depot/Niceday; Evolve; Xerox; IQ Selection; Mondi IQ; Conqueror; Epsom; Hewlett Packard; Fizz; Regal; Maine; Satimat; Crusade; Amber; Graphic; Colorit; Lumi; Kodak and Fuji.
	The brands of paper products available under the Office Depot, Lyreco and Calumet contracts are: Mondi IQ; Conqueror; Epson; Hewlett Packard; Office Depot; Xerox; Kraft; Vanguard; Lyreco/Impega; Avery; Brother; Dymo; P-touch; Clairefontaine; Jiffy; Tyvek; NewGuardian; Tenzalope; Post-it; Pukka Pad; Black n'Red; Unipad; Vestry; Goldline; Collins; Sasco; Filofax; Nobo; Acco; Bantex; Leitz; Centurion; Eastlight; Elba; Exacompta; Esselte; Concord; Acco and Fellowes.
	MOD's procurement policy requires the use of recycled paper and paper products except where these do not meet specific requirements, such as for specialist photographic paper. Recycled content under the current contracts with Office Depot and Lyreco varies between 70 per cent. and 100 per cent. It will be our aim in the follow-on contracts to adhere fully to the Government's policy, except in cases where there are specific specialised needs.

Military Bases: Security

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence pursuant to the answer of 4 February 2010,  Official Report, column 465W, on military bases: security, in which military bases the incursions were recorded.

Kevan Jones: RAF Fylingdales, HMNB Clyde and RAF Mildenhall.

COMMUNITIES AND LOCAL GOVERNMENT

Departmental Advertising

Angus MacNeil: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how much was spent on advertising by  (a) his Department and  (b) each (i) non-departmental public body and (ii) executive agency for which his Department is responsible in each year since 2005.

Barbara Follett: I refer the hon. Member to the answers given to the hon. Member for Angus (Mr. Weir) on 23 February 2010,  Official Report, column 478W, and to the hon. Member for Welwyn Hatfield (Grant Shapps) on 7 January 2010,  Official Report, columns 502-03W.

Departmental Theft

Tom Watson: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many thefts from his Department have been recorded in the last two years.

Barbara Follett: In the financial year 2007-08 there was a total of 17 thefts from the Department for Communities and Local Government. The items stolen are:
	
		
			   Number 
			 Building passes 3 
			 Desk-top computers 3 
			 Laptop computers 9 
			 Mobile phones 2 
		
	
	In the financial year 2008-09 there was a total of 11 thefts from the Department for Communities and Local Government. The items stolen are:
	
		
			   Number 
			 BlackBerrys 5 
			 Laptop computers 5 
			 Mobile phone 1 
		
	
	The stolen building passes were reported and cancelled ensuring that no unauthorised entry to CLG premises occurred.
	None of the information contained on laptops, PCs or BlackBerrys was classified. However, each laptop and PC was password protected and the BlackBerrys were both encrypted and password protected.

Derelict Land: Regeneration

Mark Todd: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government it he will establish a Coalfields Regeneration Review to gauge progress and identify priorities for the future.

Ian Austin: Communities and Local Government intend to undertake a review of the Government's programme to regenerate former coalfield communities. The Department will work with stakeholders on the details of the review and an announcement will be made in due course.

Homes and Communities Agency and Tenant Services Authority: Equality

Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government whether the  (a) Tenant Services Authority and  (b) Homes and Communities Agency has obtained legal advice on its obligations under the provisions of the Equality Bill.

John Healey: Neither the Homes and Communities Agency nor the Tenant Services Authority has sought external legal advice on the provisions of the Equality Bill. However, both organisations have considered in-house legal advice and have published single equalities schemes.

Housing Revenue Accounts

Austin Mitchell: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government when he intends to publish a draft revised Circular 8/95 on the operation of the Housing Revenue Account ring fence.

Ian Austin: We intend to make an announcement in the next few weeks which will describe the progress we have made on self-financing, set out more details of our proposals and provide a summary of responses to the consultation. We expect this will include proposals on how the housing revenue account ring fence would operate within a reformed system.

Housing: Chelmsford

Simon Burns: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many first-time buyers purchased a home in West Chelmsford constituency in the last three years.

Ian Austin: Estimates of the number of first-time buyers buying a home with a mortgage in the UK are published by the Council of Mortgage Lenders based on their Regulated Mortgage Survey. However, these data are not available at the geographical level requested.

Regional Planning and Development

Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what strategic development areas (SDAs) there are in England; how many homes are expected to be constructed in each SDA; and when each area is expected to be completed.

Ian Austin: Strategic development area is not an official or specific designation-it is a general planning term like the phrase town centre used in many, but not all, development plans (local, regional and sub regional) to refer to areas where development is expected to happen. We therefore do not hold the information requested.

Social Rented Housing: Finance

Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government 
	(1)  how many properties were funded under the Temporary Social Housing programme in each of the last three years;
	(2)  how many properties managed by registered social landlords and funded through the Temporary Social Housing programme in 2008-09 were owned by  (a) private individuals,  (b) unregistered social landlords and co-operatives,  (c) local authorities and  (d) other public bodies;
	(3)  how many properties in receipt of Temporary Social Housing programme funding were  (a) improved and  (b) unimproved in each of the last three years;
	(4)  how many properties in receipt of funding under the Temporary Social Housing programme in 2008-09 were  (a) subject to compulsory purchase orders,  (b) subject to Empty Dwelling Management Orders,  (c) long-term privately owned,  (d) awaiting redevelopment or sale and  (e) over shops in town centres;
	(5)  how many registered social landlords were in receipt of funding under the Temporary Social Housing programme in each of the last three years;
	(6)  how much was spent on the Temporary Social Housing programme in each of the last five years.

Ian Austin: holding answer 25 February 2010
	 The following table shows spend on temporary social housing (TSH) through the Homes and Communities Agency's (HCA) National Affordable Housing Programme (NAHP) over the last five years.
	
		
			   £ million 
			 2004-05 17.1 
			 2005-06 9.6 
			 2006-07 10.5 
			 2007-08 12.4 
			 2008-09 12.9 
			  Source: HCA 
		
	
	The following table shows the number of TSH units provided over each of the three years 2006-07 to 2008-09 through HCA's NAHP which were improved or unimproved and the number of registered social landlords (RSLs):
	
		
			   Improved  Unimproved  Homes provided  Number of RSLs which completed TSH schemes 
			 2006-07 146 232 378 14 
			 2007-08 311 161 472 14 
			 2008-09 260 197 457 12 
			  Source: HCA Investment Management System 
		
	
	Information is not held centrally on whether these properties were owned by  (a) private individuals,  (b) un-registered social landlords and co-operatives,  (c) local authorities and  (d) other public bodies or on whether they were  (a) properties subject to compulsory purchase orders,  (b) properties subject to Empty Dwelling Management Orders,  (c) long-term privately owned,  (d) awaiting redevelopment or sale and  (e) properties over shops in town centres.

Supported Housing: Young People

Stewart Jackson: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government pursuant to the answer of 26 January 2010,  Official Report, columns 770W, on housing: lone parents, how many individual places in foyers and specialist supported housing will be provided each year under that scheme; and whether he has made an estimate of the proportion of all 16 to 17 year old single parents able to be housed under that scheme.

Ian Austin: The Prime Minister announced in September 2009 that all 16 and 17-year-old teenage parents should receive housing with support.

TREASURY

Alcoholic Drinks: Fraud

Andrew Dismore: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many officials have been employed to deliver the HM Revenue and Customs' alcohol fraud strategy.

Sarah McCarthy-Fry: There are no figures available for the number of HMRC staff working on alcohol fraud strategy. This is because officers are deployed flexibly across a number of areas.

Banks: Manpower

David Amess: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer 
	(1)  what estimate he has made of the effect of the reclassification of employees of nationalised banks on the  (a) number of public sector employees and  (b) total public sector pay bill in the next 12 months;
	(2)  what recent estimate he has made of the effect of the reclassification of employees of banks in public ownership on  (a) the number of people employed in the public sector and  (b) total public sector pay bill.

Sarah McCarthy-Fry: It is a matter for the Office for National Statistics (ONS) to determine classification of employees in these banks and the impact that any such classification has on public sector pay over the next 12 months will be reflected in ONS statistics.

Building Societies: Regulation

Jim Cousins: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what reports he has received from the Financial Services Authority on its stress testing exercise on building societies; and whether that exercise has been concluded.

Sarah McCarthy-Fry: The FSA made a statement on stress tests on 28 May 2009, available at:
	http://www.fsa.gov.uk/pages/Library/Communication/PR/2009/068.shtml
	Further to this, the FSA have set out their ongoing approach to stress testing in Policy Paper PS 09/20 (published December 2009, available at:
	http://www.fsa.gov.uk/pages/About/What/international/stress_testing/index.shtml
	More details are available on the FSA's website.

Child Benefit: Foreigners

Philip Hammond: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer 
	(1)  how many nationals of each A8 country were receiving child benefit for a child or children living in another EEA member state at the end of December 2009; and in respect of how many such children child benefit was being paid on that date;
	(2)  how many nationals of each A8 country were receiving child benefit for a child or children living in another EEA member state at the end of the most recent month for which figures are available; and in respect of how many such children child benefit was being paid on that date.

Stephen Timms: Around 7.5 million families are currently claiming child benefit for around 13 million children.
	The information requested is provided in the table. These child benefit awards are made by virtue of EC social security co-ordinating regulations which the UK has administered since it joined the European Economic Community in 1973.
	
		
			   As of 31 December 2009  As of 28 February 2010 
			  Country  Number of awards  Number of children  Number of awards  Number of children 
			 Czech Republic 174 289 180 299 
			 Estonia 16 28 19 31 
			 Hungary 76 119 78 124 
			 Latvia 281 373 302 405 
			 Lithuania 797 1,133 827 1,196 
			 Poland 23,214 37,633 23,324 38,677 
			 Slovakia 1,506 2,554 1,523 2,639 
			 Slovenia 5 6 4 6 
			 Total 26,069 42,135 26,257 43,377

Dormant Bank and Building Society Accounts Act 2008

Martyn Jones: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer 
	(1)  how many  (a) banks and  (b) building societies have used the provisions of the Dormant Bank and Building Society Accounts Act 2008 to transfer funds into the Big Lottery Fund for good causes;
	(2)  how much money has been transferred to the Big Lottery Fund for distribution to good causes under the provisions of the Dormant Bank and Building Society Accounts Act 2008.

Sarah McCarthy-Fry: The Chancellor announced in pre-Budget report 2009 that the Co-operative Financial Services intend to submit an application to the FSA for authorisation to establish and administrate a Reclaim Fund, subject to work going ahead as planned, as part of the Dormant Bank and Building Societies Accounts Act 2008. Once established, dormant account funds will be transferred from banks and building societies to the Reclaim Fund. This will enable surplus funds to flow to the BIG Lottery Fund and to spending priorities in due course.

Equitable Life Assurance Society

Graham Brady: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer on what occasions Ministers in his Department have met with Mr Chris Wiscarson, Chief Executive of Equitable Life, since his appointment in September 2009; and when he expects the next such meeting to take place.

Sarah McCarthy-Fry: Treasury Ministers and officials have meetings with a wide variety of organisations in the public and private sectors as part of the process of policy development and delivery. As was the case with previous Administrations, it is not the Government's practice to provide details of all such meetings.

Gift Aid

David Hamilton: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer 
	(1)  how much the Government contributed to charities through the Gift Aid scheme in each of the last five years for which figures are available; and how many people made charitable contributions through the scheme in each such year;
	(2)  what steps he has taken to increase the number of charitable donations made using the Gift Aid scheme.

Ian Pearson: HMRC do not collate figures for the total number of people giving using Gift Aid. However, donations using Gift Aid, and the amount of Gift Aid tax relief paid to charities over the last five years, are set out in the following table.
	
		
			   Amount donated using Gift Aid (£ billion)  Repayments of tax to charities through Gift Aid (£ million) 
			 2004-05- 2.8 626 
			 2005-06 3.4 751 
			 2006-07 3.8 830 
			 2007-08 4.1 898 
			 2008-09 4.3 (1)947 
			 (1) £947 million includes £56 million paid as Gift Aid transitional relief supplement. Source: http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/stats/charities/menu.htm (tables 10.1 and 10.3) 
		
	
	Following the Gift Aid consultation in 2007, the Government announced a package of measures in Budget 2008 aimed at increasing the take-up of Gift Aid, including:
	improved HMRC guidance for charities and donors;
	a new Gift Aid toolkit to help charities set up and run successful Gift Aid schemes;
	extension of the tax effective giving initiative delivered through the Institute of Fundraising;
	a small charities training programme, to ensure that small local charities can access guidance and training on Gift Aid;
	promoting the use of local umbrella charities to help community and voluntary groups access Gift Aid;
	a new online Gift Aid mentoring forum for charities.
	In February 2010, HM Treasury set up a Gift Aid forum to consider further improvements to Gift Aid, informed by recent Government-sponsored research into the effect of tax incentives on charitable giving. The forum will come up with recommendations by September 2010.

Housing: Valuation

Stewart Jackson: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer pursuant to the answer of 11 January 2010,  Official Report, column 765W, on housing: valuation, how many dwellings are recorded  (a) with a WK value significant code and  (b) as having a reputational issue.

Ian Pearson: The number of dwellings recorded as  (a) having a value significant code (VSC) of WK was 72,244 as at 2 September 2009, which represents 0.3 per cent. of all dwellings in council tax valuation lists in England and Wales. No specific recording is made of  (b) a 'reputational risk'. Where a value significant feature is to be recorded that is not covered by any of the other VSCs, it is given a WK code. The number of dwellings with each VSC is available in both the disclosure log on the Valuation Office Agency's website at
	www.voa.gov.uk
	and the Library of the House.

Members: Correspondence

Mark Harper: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer when he plans to reply to the letter of  (a) 7 December 2009 and  (b) 22 January 2010 from the hon. Member for Forest of Dean on the Government's proposals to replace the existing taxation system affecting gambling, reference FD4725.

Sarah McCarthy-Fry: A reply was sent to the hon. Member on 9 January.

Non-domestic Rates: Ports

Austin Mitchell: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many port businesses in single port hereditaments were separately assessed for business rates in  (a) 2000,  (b) 2004,  (c) 2005,  (d) 2006,  (e) 2007,  (f) 2008 and  (g) 2009; what consultation was held with each of them on the matter; and what statutory requirements applied to such new assessments.

Ian Pearson: The Valuation Office Agency does not hold separate lists of properties (hereditaments) attributable to smaller locations. The information requested could be compiled only at disproportionate cost.
	As he will be aware, however, prior to the ports review around 2,000 hereditaments within the 55 ports in England and Wales were on the rating lists with an effective date of 1 April 2005. Following the review, the total increased by over 600 hereditaments.
	Valuation officers have a statutory requirement to maintain accurate rating lists and occupiers affected by the ports review were notified of the findings of the review as and when each review was completed.

Presbyterian Mutual Society

Mark Durkan: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what progress has been made by the Ministerial Working Group on the Presbyterian Mutual Society.

Sarah McCarthy-Fry: holding answer 24 February 2010
	The Ministerial Working Group on the Presbyterian Mutual Society (PMS) continues to investigate the circumstances surrounding its collapse, to consider the losses incurred by its members and to consider what, if any, action can be taken to mitigate members' losses, particularly those hardest hit by the collapse.

Public Sector

Stewart Jackson: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will place in the Library a copy of each Total Place pilot report submitted to his Department.

Liam Byrne: The publication of documents submitted by the local authorities and their partners involved in Total Place is a decision for them. However some of the pilots have now made their February 2010 reports public, by either publishing on their own websites or the Total Place website.

Rates and Rating: Caravan Sites

Stewart Jackson: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many Traveller pitches are liable for  (a) council tax and  (b) business rates; and what estimate the Valuation Office Agency has made of the number of pitches which are not rated either for council tax or business rates.

Ian Pearson: No data are available to differentiate Traveller pitches from other caravan pitches treated as dwellings for council tax purposes.
	There are currently six traveller sites subject to non-domestic rating.

Revenue and Customs: Correspondence

David Winnick: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer when the Chief Executive, HM Revenue and Customs, expects to reply to the letter of 1 February 2010 from the hon. Member for Walsall North; and for what reasons no initial acknowledgement of the letter was sent.

Stephen Timms: A reply was sent to the hon. Member on 2 March 2010.
	HM Revenue and Customs apologise for the oversight in not issuing an acknowledgement.

Revenue and Customs: Surveys

Ian Liddell-Grainger: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what HM Revenue and Customs Customer Service Survey overview reports were produced for  (a) 2007,  (b) 2008 and  (c) 2009; and where such reports are published.

Stephen Timms: The Customer Service Survey overview report for 2007 is available at:
	http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/research/
	HM Revenue and Customs is currently finalising the report of the 2008-09 Customer Survey and will publish it on the Department's website in due course.

Revenue and Customs: Television

John McDonnell: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how much HM Revenue and Customs has spent on sponsorship of the television programme The Business Inspector.

Stephen Timms: HMRC's contribution to the series' budget is £370,000. This should provide good value for money in comparison with advertising alone.

Taxation: Holiday Accommodation

Gordon Banks: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer when he will report on the findings from the technical consultation on the proposed legislation on Furnished Holiday Lettings which closed on 26 February.

Stephen Timms: There are no plans to publish a full report on the findings from the technical consultation on the proposed legislation to repeal the Furnished Holiday Lettings (FHL) rules, as none of the responses to this informal consultation identified any technical difficulties with the draft legislation which was published at the 2009 Pre-Budget Report.
	Some respondents identified specific points on which they would like more information about the effects of the repeal. HMRC plan to issue further guidance to supplement the information provided in the technical note issued at the 2009 Pre-Budget Report.

Taxation: Overseas Income

Gordon Prentice: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will bring forward legislative proposals to allow UK citizens to be taxed on their worldwide income; and if he will make a statement.

Stephen Timms: Individuals, including UK citizens, who are resident, ordinarily resident and domiciled in the UK are liable to UK tax on their worldwide income. The Government have no plans to introduce legislation to make all UK citizens taxable on their worldwide income.

Valuation Office Agency: Contracts

Stewart Jackson: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer pursuant to the answer of 4 February 2010,  Official Report, column 522W, on the Valuation Office: contracts, how much the Valuation Office Agency spent on each of the listed suppliers in 2008-09.

Ian Pearson: A list showing the amounts spent by the Valuation Office Agency on the suppliers who provided goods and services to the Valuation Office Agency in 2008-09 is being placed in the Library of the House.

Valuation Office Agency: North East

Austin Mitchell: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many staff of the Valuation Office Agency worked in  (a) the North East and  (b) North Lincolnshire in each year since 1997; and how many such staff were visually impaired in each of those years.

Ian Pearson: The Valuation Office Agency does not hold staff in post or disability data based upon the North East and North Lincolnshire for each year since 1997.

CABINET OFFICE

Census: Sikhs

Mark Pritchard: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office if she will meet representatives of Sikhs to discuss proposals for the inclusion of a Sikh category in the ethnic data collection within the 2011 National Census.

Angela Smith: The Office for National Statistics consulted widely in establishing the proposed content of the 2011 Census, which included a public consultation and consultation with Sikh representatives. Following consultation, and in accordance with the Census Act 1920, the proposed content was laid before Parliament in The Census (England and Wales) Order 2009 in October 2009. Parliament approved the Order, which came into force on 10 December. As the content of the 2011 Census is now determined, it is not appropriate for me to meet Sikh representatives to discuss the inclusion of a Sikh category in the ethnicity question within the 2011 Census.

Departmental Buildings

Philip Hammond: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office how much her Department spent on office refurbishments in each of the last 10 years.

Angela Smith: This information could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Departmental Paper

Martin Horwood: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what  (a) suppliers and  (b) brands of (i) paper and (ii) paper products (A) her Department and (B) the Prime Minister's Office uses; and what the policy is of each on the procurement of those materials.

Angela Smith: The Prime Minister's Office is an integral part of the Cabinet Office.
	Office Depot supplies the Cabinet Office with its paper and paper products.
	The majority of the Department's paper usage relates to photocopying and printing, for which Evolve Everyday A4 and A3 80 gsm copier paper is used. These products are 100 per cent. recycled.
	The paper for photocopying and printing is ordered centrally; other types of paper products can be bought as required by nominated individuals.

Exports

David Hamilton: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what the monetary value of goods and services exported from  (a) Scotland and  (b) the UK was in each of the last five years for which figures are available.

Ian Lucas: I have been asked to reply.
	The figures in the following table for exports of goods have been taken from HM Revenue and Customs Regional Trade Statistics.
	
		
			  £ billion 
			   UK  Scotland 
			 2004 190.5 11.9 
			 2005 211.8 12.7 
			 2006 243.8 13.5 
			 2007 219.9 13.7 
			 2008 248.8 14.3 
		
	
	Office for National Statistics (ONS) data for UK exports of services for the same years are shown in the following table on a Balance of Payments basis.
	
		
			   UK (£ billion) 
			 2004 112.9 
			 2005 119.2 
			 2006 134.2 
			 2007 150.6 
			 2008 170.8 
		
	
	The ONS does not produce comparable services trade statistics for countries and regions of the UK; the Scottish Executive publishes some data as part of its Global Connections Survey, available from:
	http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Topics/Statistics/Browse/Economy/Exports

Honours

Francis Maude: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office with reference to the Prime Minister's speech at Britain's Everyday Heroes Book Launch of 24 July 2007, how much has been spent on the advertising campaign relating to the Good Neighbour MBE to date.

Tessa Jowell: £400,000 including VAT was spent on a regional advertising campaign in 2007-08 to encourage nominations for people who were doing outstanding service in their local community. The campaign focused on four areas: Scotland, the North West, Yorkshire and the Humber; and the West Midlands, areas which had shown least awareness of the honours system.

Hotels

Francis Maude: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office pursuant to the answer of 29 January 2010,  Official Report, column 1145W, on Government departments: hotels, if she will place in the Library a copy of the summary data on bookings made under the Expotel facility in respect of her Department in 2009.

Angela Smith: The summary data for bookings made through the Cabinet Office's corporate contract with Expotel contain information including their commercial rates which must be treated as commercial in confidence.

Hotels

Francis Maude: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office pursuant to the answer to the hon. Member for Ruislip Northwood of 3 February 2010,  Official Report, column 410W, on hotels, which sections of her Department made the 55 bookings for five star hotels; and which hotel was booked in each case.

Angela Smith: Cabinet Office is periodically requested to answer questions which may relate to the involvement of sensitive work streams. In this instance the majority, of the bookings are sensitive.
	In order to safeguard the effectiveness of both the security arrangements in place, and those involved in such areas, it has been the practice of successive governments not to disclose specific information concerning those involved or its associates.
	This is in line with exemptions 1(a) and 7(b) as set out in Part II of the 'Code of Practice on Access to Government Information'.

Jobseeker's Allowance

David Lidington: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office how many people have claimed jobseeker's allowance in each quarter since April 2008.

Angela Smith: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the authority to reply.
	 Letter from Stephen Penneck, dated March 2010:
	The Office for National Statistics (ONS) compiles monthly counts of the number of claimants of Jobseeker's Allowance (JSA) from the Jobcentre Plus administrative system. Table 1 shows the number of people, resident in the United Kingdom, claiming Jobseeker's Allowance (JSA) at the end of each quarter since April 2008.
	National and local area estimates for many labour market statistics, including employment, unemployment and claimant count are available on the NOMIS website at
	http://www.nomisweb.co.uk
	
		
			  Table 1: Number of persons claiming Jobseeker's Allowance resident in the UK Seasonally adjusted: United Kingdom 
			   T housand 
			 June 2008 843.3 
			 September 2008 956.7 
			 December 2008 1,175.8 
			 March 2009 1,455.9 
			 June 2009 1,557.8 
			 September 2009 1,626.6 
			 December 2009 1,612.1 
			  Source:  Jobcentre Plus Administrative System

Social Workers: Females

David Amess: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what recent estimate she has made of the proportion of people employed in social care who are women.

Angela Smith: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the authority to reply.
	 Letter from Stephen Penneck, dated March 2010:
	As Director General for the Office for National Statistics, I have been asked to reply to your Parliamentary Question asking for the recent estimate of the proportion of people employed in social care who are women. (320654)
	For the period October-December 2009 it was estimated that 1.4 million women were employed in social care in the UK, the proportion of women employed in social care is 80.0 percent.
	These estimates are derived from the Labour Force Survey (LFS) and are not seasonally adjusted. The social care estimate was derived using the Standard Industrial Classification (SIC2007) codes: 87. Residential care activities and 88. Social work activities without accommodation.
	As with any sample survey, the estimates provided are subject to a margin of uncertainty.

Trade Unions

Robert Syms: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office how many days staff of  (a) her Department,  (b) the Charity Commission and  (c) the Central Office of Information spent on trade union activity in the latest year for which figures are available; and what recent estimate she has made of the annual cost to the public purse of such activity.

Angela Smith: The following number of staff days have been allocated as trade union facility time for 2009-10:
	 (a) The Cabinet Office: 250 days.
	 (b) The Charity Commission: 188 days.
	 (c) The Central Office of Information: 55 days.
	The annual cost of trade union activity for each organisation is not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Unemployment

David Lidington: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office how many people were not in employment in each quarter since April 2008.

Angela Smith: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the authority to reply.
	 Letter from Stephen Penneck, dated March 2010:
	As Director General for the Office for National Statistics, I have been asked to reply to your Parliamentary Question asking how many people were not in employment in each quarter since April 2008. (320175 )
	The table provided contains estimates of the number of people not in employment. These estimates have been derived from the figures published by the ONS in the monthly Labour Market Statistical Bulletin.
	As with any sample survey, the estimates provided are subject to a margin of uncertainty. Indications of the sampling variability of LFS aggregate estimates are provided in the Statistical Bulletin.
	
		
			  Number of people aged 16 and over, not in employment( 1 ) United Kingdom, seasonally adjusted 
			   T housan d 
			 April to June 2008 19,504 
			 July to September 2008 19,722 
			 October to December 2008 19,895 
			 January to March 2009 20,153 
			 April to June 2009 20,493 
			 July to September 2009 20,599 
			 October to December 2009 20,708 
			 (1) Unemployed people plus those who were economically inactive  Source:  ONS Labour Force Survey

Voluntary Work

Francis Maude: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office with reference to the Prime Minister's speech at Britain's Everyday Heroes Book Launch of 24 July 2007, what steps have been taken to mark the contribution of volunteers on 24 July each year.

Angela Smith: The Government have used the 24 July to recognise and celebrate the efforts of those making a difference in our communities. This has included work with the Council on Social Action as well as voluntary and community groups to support and encourage them to find more ways to celebrate all those acting for social good.
	Events to mark the day have included the Catalyst Awards for people using technology to create social change, a reception at 10 Downing street for local heroes across the country and the creation of the National Talent Bank to act as an intermediary between employers who are scaling back working hours and volunteering organisations.

HOUSE OF COMMONS COMMISSION

Palace of Westminster

Greg Knight: To ask the hon. Member for North Devon, representing the House of Commons Commission for what reason the Carriage Gates exit to the Palace of Westminster was closed on 1 February 2010.

Nick Harvey: At approximately 5.12 pm on 1 February, a defect with the drop bolt on the Carriage Gates exit gate was discovered which left the gate unsecured when in the open position. Due to the risk of the gate swinging closed against a vehicle or person the decision was made to leave the gate in the closed and locked position. Remedial work was carried out overnight and the gate was returned to service. The in gate remained in use throughout.

Regional Committees

Stewart Jackson: To ask the hon. Member for North Devon, representing the House of Commons Commission what the cost has been of the operation of each  (a) regional grand committee and  (b) regional select committee since its inception.

Nick Harvey: The information requested is as follows:
	 (a) An estimate of the costs for regional grand committees to the end of February 2010 is given in the following table. Costs include hire of accommodation, sound recording, police support, and travel and subsistence for staff. No additional staffing costs were incurred as no extra staff were engaged to work for regional grand committees.
	
		
			   Cost of regional grand committees (£) 
			 East of England 1,647 
			 East Midlands 2,858 
			 North East 4,238 
			 North West 3,956 
			 South East 4,196 
			 South West 6,850 
			 West Midlands 2,392 
			 Yorkshire and Humber 749 
			 Total 26,886 
		
	
	 (b) An estimate of the costs of regional select committees is given in the following table. Costs include staffing, hire of accommodation, transcription of evidence, printing, specialist advisers' and witnesses' expenses, and travel and subsistence for staff. Expenditure on staffing cannot be broken down by region as these committees were supported from a pool of staff in the Department of Chamber and Committee Services.
	
		
			   Cost of regional select committees up to end of February 2010 (£) 
			 East of England 22 
			 East Midlands 16,787 
			 London 6 
			 North East 24,053 
			 North West 13,904 
			 South East 13,125 
			 South West 26,752 
			 West Midlands 23,175 
			 Yorkshire and Humber 3,640 
			 Staffing costs for all regions 311,400 
			 Total 432,865

JUSTICE

Convictions: Essex

Simon Burns: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many people in  (a) West Chelmsford constituency and  (b) Essex have been convicted of offences (i) of domestic burglary and (ii) related to drug offences in each year since 2005.

Claire Ward: Information showing the number of persons found guilty at all courts for domestic burglary and drugs offences in the Essex police force area from 2005 to 2008 (latest available) is shown in the following table.
	Court proceedings data are not available at parliamentary constituency level.
	Data for 2009 are planned for publication in the autumn, 2010.
	
		
			  Persons found guilty at all courts for domestic burglary and drugs offences, in the Essex police force area, from 2005 to 2008( 1, 2, 3) 
			  Number 
			  Offence  2005  2006  2007  2008( 3) 
			 Burglary in a dwelling 272 249 292 291 
			 Drugs offences 774 742 570 979 
			 Total 1,046 991 862 1,270 
			 (1) The statistics relate to persons for whom these offences were the principal offences for which they were dealt with. When a defendant has been found guilty of two or more offences the principal offence is the offence for which the heaviest penalty is imposed. Where the same disposal is imposed for two or more offences, the offence selected is the offence for which the statutory maximum penalty is the most severe.  (2) Every effort is made to ensure that the figures presented are accurate and complete. However, it is important to note that these data have been extracted from large administrative data systems generated by the courts and police forces. As a consequence, care should be taken to ensure data collection processes and their inevitable limitations are taken into account when those data are used.  (3) Excludes convictions for Cardiff magistrates court for April, July and August 2008.   Source:  Justice Statistics Analytical Services-Ministry of Justice.

Departmental Plants

David Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how much  (a) his Department and  (b) its agencies has spent on pot plants in 2009-10.

Jack Straw: The information requested is as follows and covers expenditure for pot plants at the Ministry of Justice headquarters estate, for the period 2009-10.
	
		
			   £  Period 
			 Pot plants (1)20,162.29 11 months 
			 (1)Excluding VAT.  Note: Of which £10,503.66 is attributable to the Department; and £9,658.63 is attributable to its agencies occupying parts of the HQ estate. 
		
	
	The figures do not include costs from the Tribunal Service, Her Majesty's Court Service or the National Offender Management Service as no separate accounting code is used to record pot plants and to obtain this information would require a manual trawl of each Division at a disproportionate cost.

Driving Offences

Mark Hunter: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what the average  (a) fine and  (b) length of sentence for an offence of dangerous driving was in each of the last 10 years.

Claire Ward: The requested information is provided in the following table:
	
		
			  Average fine and average length of sentence for dangerous driving( 1) , 1998 to 2008 
			   Average fine  amount (£)  Average custodial sentence length (months) 
			 1998 353.50 7.7 
			 1999 361.38 7.8 
			 2000 334.72 7.7 
			 2001 366.98 7.9 
			 2002 374.60 8.3 
			 2003 386.79 8.5 
			 2004 451.63 8.7 
			 2005 437.90 8.5 
			 2006 489.89 9.1 
			 2007 530.58 8.9 
			 2008 623.94 9.5 
			 (1) Road Traffic Act 1988 S.2. Dangerous Driving.  (2) Excludes life and indeterminate sentences.   Notes:  1. These figures have been drawn from administrative data systems. Although care is taken when processing and analysing the returns, the detail collected is subject to the inaccuracies inherent in any large scale recording system.  2. The data have been taken from the Ministry of Justice Court Proceedings database. The data are presented on the principal offence basis. Where an offender has been sentenced for more than one offence the principal offence is the one for which the heaviest sentence was imposed. Where the same sentence has been imposed for two or more offences the principal offence is the one for which the statutory maximum is most severe.

Legal Aid Scheme: Negligence

Henry Bellingham: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how much was spent on legal aid for medical negligence cases in each of the last 10 years.

Bridget Prentice: Amount spent net of receipts on civil representation together with the value of claims submitted under legal help, under the clinical negligence category of law, in each of the last 10 years is shown in the following table.
	
		
			  £ million 
			   Civil representation  Legal help 
			   Expenditure  Value of claims submitted 
			 1999-2000 31.0 - 
			 2000-01 34.0 0.7 
			 2001-02 33.7 0.8 
			 2002-03 30.4 1.0 
			 2003-04 36.9 1.0 
			 2004-05 25.8 1.0 
			 2005-06 28.5 0.9 
			 2006-07 25.2 0.8 
			 2007-08 27.3 0.7 
			 2008-09 27.0 0.9 
		
	
	Civil representation includes work carried out under a legal aid certificate in matters that may or do proceed to court. Net expenditure is net of funding that is recovered, including from 'settled cases' where the other side (i.e. the non-legally aided client) agrees to pay costs.
	Legal help includes initial legal advice. The figures are only available from January 2000, when contracting was introduced. The value quoted in the table is the value of claims that providers have submitted.

Prisoners

Dominic Grieve: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice 
	(1)  how many prisoners from  (a) the UK,  (b) Ireland and  (c) other European Economic Area countries serving mandatory life sentences have been released in each of the last five years;
	(2)  how many offences of  (a) murder,  (b) rape,  (c) other homicide,  (d) attempted murder and  (e) attempted rape had been committed by offenders on End of Custody Licence.

Jack Straw: The information requested is currently being collated by officials. I will write to the hon. Member once this work is complete and place a copy of the letter in the Library.

Prisoners

Dominic Grieve: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many prisoners from  (a) Ireland and  (b) other European Economic Area countries with mandatory life sentences are subject to probation supervision with a residential address in the UK.

Jack Straw: This information is no longer held centrally and to collate it now would require a manual checking of paper files held in local probation areas, which can be undertaken only at a disproportionate cost.
	The life licence lasts for the rest of the offender's life. Therefore, any life sentence prisoner residing in the UK would be subject to immediate recall to custody if he breached the conditions of his life licence.

Prisoners

John McDonnell: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice 
	(1)  how many prosecutions have been brought following the discovery of pornographic or violent images on mobile phones seized from prisoners;
	(2)  whether any prisoner has been charged with corrupting a public official during the last 12 months.

Claire Ward: The Court Proceedings Database holds information on defendants proceeded against, found guilty and sentenced for criminal offences in England and Wales. The Court Proceedings Database does not hold specific information on offences beyond descriptions provided by the statutes under which prosecutions are brought. Information available centrally on defendant's proceeded against does not identify if the defendant is a prisoner.

Prisons: Mobile Phones

John McDonnell: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice whether his Department has  (a) commissioned and  (b) evaluated research into the means by which illicit mobile phones are brought into prisons.

Maria Eagle: The National Offender Management Service (NOMS) has not commissioned specific research into the means by which illicit mobile phones are brought into prisons. However, phones enter prisons by the same routes as other contraband: visitors; over the wall; post and parcels; reception; and remand prisoners and staff.
	David Blakey CBE QPM DL, formerly Her Majesty's Inspector of Constabulary and Chief Constable of West Mercia, was commissioned by the Director General of NOMS, at the Justice Secretary's request, with undertaking a review of the effectiveness of HM Prison Service's measures for disrupting the supply of illicit drugs in prisons.
	Mr. Blakey confirmed the five main routes for illicit drugs to get into prisons, and noted that the use of each route and the traffic flowing along it will alter from time to time and from place to place. He recognised the link between the availability of phones in prisons and the smuggling of illicit drugs. NOMS is determined to address the risks that mobile phones present to security and to the safety of the public. Our strategy is to: minimise the number of mobile phones entering prisons; find mobile phones that are smuggled into prisons; and disrupt mobile phones that we cannot find.

Prisons: Overcrowding

John McDonnell: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what mechanisms are planned to assist new private prisons to reduce levels of prison overcrowding.

Maria Eagle: Crowding levels are set and managed carefully by the National Offender Management Service. Prison crowding occurs when the number of prisoners in an accommodation unit exceeds the certified normal capacity (CNA) of that unit. A prison's certified normal accommodation (CNA) is therefore its agreed capacity when there is no crowding. A prison's operational capacity is the maximum number of prisoners it is allowed to hold over and above CNA taking into account control, security and the proper operation of regimes. In addition operational managers must ensure that each cell used for the confinement of prisoners has sufficient heating, lighting and ventilation and is of adequate size for the number of prisoners to be held in it. Operational capacity in prisons is set by Directors of Offender Management on behalf of the Secretary of State in both publicly managed and contracted establishments.
	The Government are committed to increasing substantially the capacity of the prison estate and plans to provide 96,000 places by 2014.
	On 27 April 2009 the Justice Secretary announced that the Ministry of Justice plans to build up to five new 1,500 place prisons. The private and third sector will be invited to bid for the construction and operation of these new prisons and places are currently planned to be provided on an uncrowded basis.

Repossession Orders: Chelmsford

Simon Burns: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many court orders for the repossession of homes in West Chelmsford constituency have been issued in each of the last five years.

Bridget Prentice: The following table shows the numbers of claims leading to orders being made for the repossession of property by mortgage lenders and landlords in the West Chelmsford constituency in each of the last five years.
	These figures represent the numbers of claims leading to orders being made. This is more accurate than the number of orders, removing the double-counting of instances where a single claim leads to more than one order. It is also a more meaningful measure of the number of homeowners who are subject to court repossession actions.
	These figures do not indicate how many properties have actually been repossessed. Repossessions can occur without a court order being made, while not all court orders result in repossession.
	Tables showing the numbers of possession claims leading to an order in each constituency of England and Wales and in each year since 2000 for mortgages and 2003 for landlords have been placed in the Library of the House.
	
		
			  Number of mortgage( 1)  and landlord( 2,3)  possession claims leading to orders made( 4,5,6,7)  for properties in West Chelmsford constituency, 2005-09 
			   Mortgage possession  Landlord possession 
			 2005 110 110 
			 2006 115 120 
			 2007 125 125 
			 2008 145 150 
			 2009 85 125 
			  Notes:  1. Includes all types of mortgage lenders.  2. Includes all types of landlord whether social or private.  3. Landlord actions include those made under both standard and accelerated procedures. Landlord actions via the accelerated procedure enables the orders to be made solely on the basis of written evidence for shorthold tenancies, when the fixed period of tenancy has come to an end.  4. The number of claims that lead to an order includes all claims in which the first order, whether outright or suspended, is made during the period.  5. The court, following a judicial hearing, may grant an order for possession immediately. This entitles the claimant to apply for a warrant to have the defendant evicted. However, even where a warrant for possession is issued, the parties can still negotiate a compromise to prevent eviction.  6. Includes outright and suspended orders, the latter being where the court grants the claimant possession but suspends the operation of the order. Provided the defendant complies with the terms of suspension, which usually require the defendant to pay the current mortgage or rent instalments plus some of the accrued arrears, the possession order cannot be enforced.  7. All figures are rounded to the nearest 5.   Source:  Ministry of Justice.

SCOTLAND

Departmental Disciplinary Proceedings

Barry Gardiner: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland how many  (a) disciplinary and  (b) capability procedures have been (i) initiated and (ii) completed in his Department in each of the last five years; how much time on average was taken to complete each type of procedure in each such year; how many and what proportion of his Department's staff were subject to each type of procedure in each such year; and how many and what proportion of each type of procedure resulted in the dismissal of the member of staff.

Ann McKechin: No disciplinary or capability procedures have been initiated or completed in the Scotland Office in each of the last five years.

Departmental Paper

Martin Horwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what  (a) suppliers and  (b) brands of (i) paper and (ii) paper products his Department uses; and what his Department's policy is on the procurement of those materials.

Ann McKechin: The Scotland Office participates in a contract, let by the Scottish Government, which prescribes the purchase of paper, and paper products, from recycled sources.
	 (a) Through this contract, the Scotland Office has both its paper and paper products supplied by Lyreco, with additional ad hoc purchases made through Banner Business Supplies, RR Donnelly and Piccolo Press.
	 (b) Brands of paper and paper products used by the Scotland Office are Impega, Evolve, Pukka, Black N Red, Sinclair, Avery, Collins, Elba, Xerox, Banner, Kleenex and Scott Performance.

Departmental Temporary Employment

Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland which companies his Department used to provide temporary staff in 2008-09; how many temporary staff were employed in that year; and what the monetary value of contracts with each such company in that year was.

Ann McKechin: Details of the companies used by the Scotland Office to provide temporary staff in 2008-09 are provided in the following table;
	
		
			  Company  Number of staff  Cost (£) 
			 Kelly's 1 4,445.57 
			 Eclipse 4 36,914.63 
			 Michael Page International 1 18,971.55

Scottish Government

David Mundell: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland how many meetings  (a) he,  (b) his predecessors and  (c) other Ministers in his Department had with Scottish Executive Ministers in each month since May 2007.

Jim Murphy: Ministers and officials have meetings with a wide variety of organisations in the public and private sectors as part of the process of policy development and delivery. As was the case with previous Administrations, it is not the Government's practice to provide details of all such meetings.

PUBLIC ACCOUNTS COMMISSION

Illegal Immigrants

Robert Syms: To ask the Chairman of the Public Accounts Commission how many staff the National Audit Office has appointed who were later discovered to be illegal immigrants since 2005.

Alan Williams: The National Audit Office has not appointed any staff since 2005 later discovered to be illegal immigrants.

Trade Unions

Robert Syms: To ask the Chairman of the Public Accounts Commission how many days staff of the Public Accounts Commission spent on trade union activity in the latest year for which figures are available; and what recent estimate has been made of the annual cost to the public purse of such activity.

Alan Williams: No days were spent on trade union activity in 2009.

ENVIRONMENT FOOD AND RURAL AFFAIRS

Agriculture: Subsidies

Bill Wiggin: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs by what means his Department will ensure any outcomes arising from the Axis 1 subsidies meet the required goals; and how those outcomes will be reported.

Dan Norris: Responsibility for delivery of Axis 1 of the Rural Development Programme for England (RDPE) lies mainly with the regional development agencies (RDAs). In considering any application for support from the programme, RDAs apply rigorous appraisal processes under which applications are assessed against a range of criteria and the extent to which they meet programme objectives and regional strategic priorities.
	As managing authority for the programme, DEFRA retains overall responsibility for oversight of delivery of the programme and the achievement of outcomes. DEFRA maintains regular formal and informal liaison with the RDAs, who report frequently to DEFRA on the delivery of the programme. Regular reports are also made to the RDPE Programme Monitoring Committee, which comprises stakeholder and delivery bodies.
	Monitoring and evaluation of the effectiveness with which the Axis 1 objectives are being met is carried out in accordance with procedures that are set out in EU legislation. These monitoring procedures include submission of an annual report by DEFRA. Programme evaluation is undertaken at the mid-point of the programme period (2007-13) and following the end of the programme period. The programme's mid-term evaluation process will be carried out during 2010. Some RDAs are also undertaking targeted evaluation activity at a regional level to help inform programme delivery.

Air Pollution

Nigel Evans: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what estimate he has made of the level of  (a) particulate and  (b) nitrous oxide emissions in each of the last five years.

Jim Fitzpatrick: Estimates of the UK emissions for a range of air pollutants are submitted annually to the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe's Convention on Long Range Transboundary Air Pollution. The following table shows the emission estimates for fine particles (PM2.5), coarse particles (PM10), nitrous oxide (N2O) and nitrogen oxides (NOx) in each of the last five years for which data are available.
	
		
			  Pollutant  2004  2005  2006  2007  2008 
			 Fine particles, PM2.5 (kt) 87 86 86 84 81 
			 Coarse particles, PM10 (kt) 141 138 139 137 133 
			 Nitrous oxide, N2O (kt) 123 119 114 112 109 
			 Nitrogen oxides, NOx (kt) 1,708 1,682 1,654 1,557 1,403

Animal Feed

Lembit �pik: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs 
	(1)  what recent estimate he has made of the average fishmeal content of organic pig and poultry feed;
	(2)  what assessment he has made of the contribution of fishmeal to the nutritional content of organic pig and poultry feed;
	(3)  what recent research his Department has  (a) commissioned and  (b) undertaken on the effect on the organic classification of organic pig and poultry feed of the increase in fishmeal content.

Jim Fitzpatrick: EU rules for organic production (contained in Council Regulation 834/2007 and Commission Regulation 889/2008) require organic livestock to be fed entirely on organically produced feed. However, until 1 January 2012, they also permit 5 per cent. of the feed for organic pigs and poultry to be composed of conventionally produced materials when sufficient organic feed cannot be obtained. This concession currently allows for difficulties with sourcing protein ingredients for organic pig and poultry feed to be accommodated. DEFRA's Advisory Committee on Organic Standards is investigating the role that fishmeal can play, as a protein source for organic pig and poultry feed, when the requirement for these animals to be given 100 per cent. organic feed begins on 1 January 2012.

Animal Welfare

Bill Wiggin: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs by what means his Department's health and welfare strategy indicators will be reported on  (a) where the species of animal concerned is not covered by a sector council established under the England Implementation Group (EIG) and  (b) following the disbandment of the EIG.

Jim Fitzpatrick: Arrangements for monitoring the Animal Health and Welfare Strategy are under review following the disbandment of the England Implementation Group. A decision has not yet been made on whether these indicators will continue to be updated in future. The last update of the Animal Health and Welfare Strategy Indicators was in autumn 2008 and is available on the DEFRA website.

Biodiversity

Nick Herbert: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs when the collection of data for the 2008 UK Biodiversity Action Plan progress report was completed; and when he expects the report to be published.

Huw Irranca-Davies: Experts were invited to collect and submit information between September and December 2008. This was used to assess the status of Biodiversity Action Plan Priority Species and Habitats. The assessment was published in April 2009, as part of the update to the UK Biodiversity Indicators in Your Pocket. This can be found on the website of the Joint Nature Conservation Committee.

Biodiversity

Nick Herbert: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what steps he plans to take to evaluate progress against the 2010 targets for priority species and habitats under the UK Biodiversity Action Plan.

Huw Irranca-Davies: We are considering carefully with our devolved colleagues and statutory advisers the options for assessing progress against the 2010 targets for priority species and habitats under the UK Biodiversity Action Plan.

Biofuels: Boilers

Nigel Evans: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what plans he has to  (a) control and  (b) reduce emissions of (i) particulates and (ii) nitrous oxide from biomass boilers of less than 20 megawatts.

Jim Fitzpatrick: Pollution emissions from biomass boilers of less than 20 Megawatts thermal input are regulated under the Clean Air Act 1993, unless they are burning waste material at greater than 400 kW thermal input, or covered by a permit required under the waste incineration directive (2000/76/EC) depending on the nature of the biomass being burnt.
	The existing controls for the remaining appliances arise from the Clean Air Act. Local authorities have the power to approve the grit and dust arrestment equipment fitted to appliances over a certain size as set out in regulation. Within smoke control areas designated by local authorities, only boilers exempt by Parliament can be installed.
	In February, the Government launched a consultation(1) on the Renewable Heat Incentive (RHI) which proposes measures to encourage the uptake of renewable energy including biomass combustion.
	Measures are included in the RHI requiring biomass boilers, including boilers less than 20 Megawatt, to meet high standards of emission performance for particles and nitrogen oxides (NOx), though not for nitrous oxide (N2O). The effect of these measures will be to reduce the emission of particles from biomass boilers by at least 60 per cent. for the same quantity of heat delivered, compared to the typical performance of current wood fuelled boilers.
	(1)( )http://www.decc.gov.uk/en/content/cms/what_we_do/uk_supply/energy_mix/renewable/policy/renewable_heat/incentive/incentive.aspx

Departmental Sick Leave

David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many staff in his Department have had five or more periods of sickness absence of less than five days in two or more of the last three years.

Dan Norris: As at 31 December 2009, out of a total of 10,092 staff in DEFRA and its agencies (excluding the Centre for Environment, Fisheries and Aquaculture Science (CEFAS)), 621 staff have had five or more periods of sickness absence of fewer than five days in two or more of the last three years. This figure has been based on the last three calendar years except for Rural Payments Agency, which has used financial years. CEFAS is implementing a new management information system and its figure is currently unavailable.
	DEFRA and its agencies closely monitor sickness absence in line with their sickness absence policies and by benchmarking sick absence rates against Cabinet Office figures for the civil service. Policies and good working practices are in place to reduce frequent short-term sick absences. These include facilitating timely employee access to occupational health advice, medical or wellbeing interventions. Additionally, managers hold return-to-work interviews to discuss employees' reasons for absence, including any work-related issues connected with their absence. Where necessary, action plans will be agreed to improve employees' attendance at work.

Domestic Waste: Waste Disposal

Stewart Jackson: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs pursuant to the answer of 29 January 2010,  Official Report, column 1135W, on Audit Commission: internet, if he will place in the Library a copy of the latest data on which local authorities collect residual household waste less than once a week according to records held by (a) his Department and (b) the Waste and Resources Action Programme.

Dan Norris: Data held by DEFRA and the Waste and Resources Action Programme showing which local authorities in England collected residual household waste less than once a week in 2008-09 have been placed in the Library.

Eels

Mark Todd: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if he will assess the effect on small-scale hydroelectric schemes of the obligation to provide eel passes.

Huw Irranca-Davies: Eel passes will be required wherever eels are present but are prevented from upstream migration; the Environment Agency will undertake an exercise to identify such locations during 2010.
	The Environment Agency estimates that approximately 500 schemes (involving between 10-20 eel passes per scheme) will be required. Eel passes generally cost significantly less than those required to enable the migration of salmonids and can be in the order of between £500 to £2,000 per pass. However, where other substantial works are ongoing at the same time, the additional cost of building an eel pass or other easement can be much reduced. A separate assessment of the effect on small-scale hydroelectric schemes of the requirement to provide eel passes has not been made.

Environmental Permitting (England and Wales) Regulations 2010

Lembit �pik: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs whether his Department plans to amend the Environmental Permitting Regulations; and if he will make a statement.

Dan Norris: The Environmental Permitting (England and Wales) Regulations 2010 are currently before Parliament and are anticipated to come into force on 6 April 2010. These regulations form part of the second phase of environmental permitting, which will amend and expand the current regime.

Fish: Conservation

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if he will have discussions with ministerial colleagues on the public procurement of  (a) fish and  (b) shellfish to increase the proportions procured from sustainable sources.

Huw Irranca-Davies: My colleague, the Minister for Food, Farming and Environment (Jim Fitzpatrick) has spoken or written to Ministers with responsibility for procurement to encourage them to procure food that has been sourced sustainably which includes the procurement of fish and shellfish. The latest report on food used in Government Departments shows that eight Departments purchased 100 per cent. of their fish from sustainable sources and for a further Department the figure was 99 per cent. We are also considering the case for introducing a minimum mandatory buying standard for central Government for food and catering, including for the procurement of seafood from sustainable sources.

Fisheries

Lembit �pik: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what recent research his Department has  (a) commissioned and  (b) undertaken on the effects on aquatic reefs and plants from trawling; and if he will make a statement.

Huw Irranca-Davies: DEFRA does not currently fund any research aimed specifically at examining the damage caused by trawling on aquatic reefs and plants. Earlier research has however helped to establish the extent to which fishing practices such as trawling had on the wider benthic community.
	This early work has enabled us to be better informed about how we might help protect sensitive habitats such as reefs. DEFRA is currently funding a research project in Lyme Bay to examine how the seabed recovers within a Marine Protected Area. No scallop dredging or bottom trawling is allowed and the project aims to monitor the effects of the MPA, including the recovery of benthic communities.
	Reefs are one of the habitats listed for which Special Areas of Conservation (SAC) are required to be designated under the EC habitats directive. Between 2004 and 2009 the Joint Nature Conservation Committee carried out a number of surveys in UK offshore waters to identify reef sites suitable for SAC designation. Details of these surveys can be found at:
	http://www.jncc.gov.uk/page-4544
	To date 37 SACs with reef as a qualifying habitat have been designated, with further sites subject to consultation or further analysis of data. By the end of 2012 it is estimated that around 36 per cent. of the UK reef habitat will be protected by European designations.
	You will be interested to note that Charting Progress 2, which is due to be published in July 2010, has examined both the state and impact from pressures such as fishing on different components of the marine ecosystem, within the marine environment, to provide an overall assessment of the UK's seas.
	Further details of DEFRA's current research programme can be found by following this link:
	http://randd.defra.gov.uk/
	and carrying out a word search (for example 'fisheries').

Fisheries

Lembit �pik: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what estimate he has made of the number of non-target species accidentally caught as a result of industrial fishing techniques in  (a) 2007,  (b) 2008 and  (c) 2009.

Huw Irranca-Davies: Industrial fishing is the term applied to fishing activity where the catch is intended for processing into fish meal and oil rather than for human consumption. Industrial fishing uses smaller meshed nets than human consumption fisheries as they are targeting fish which are small even when fully grown and this will inevitably lead to the capture of small, often immature, individuals of other species.
	In European waters, industrial fishing is undertaken for blue whiting, Norway pout, sandeel and sprat. The Norway pout and sandeel fisheries are exclusively industrial and are conducted in the North sea and Skagerrak, while the blue whiting fishery is only partly industrial and considerably more geographically widespread.
	Fish stocks in EU waters are assessed by the International Council for the Exploration of the Sea (ICES). There are linkages between sandeel fishing and other species through by-catch, although scientific advice indicates that by-catches of prime human consumption species within the sandeel fishery are relatively small compared to the fisheries for human consumption.
	ICES annually calculates industrial by-catches; i.e. landings of non-target species, for whiting and haddock in the North sea. Landings of North sea whiting from the industrial fisheries were 1,230 tonnes and 1,020 tonnes in 2007 and 2008, respectively. Landings of North sea haddock from the industrial fisheries were 48 tonnes and 199 tonnes in 2007 and 2008, respectively.
	ICES has yet to analyse the data for 2009 and hence results will not be available until later in 2010.

Fisheries

Lembit �pik: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what recent research his Department has  (a) commissioned and  (b) undertaken on the effect on the level of fish stocks of industrial fishing techniques; and if he will make a statement.

Huw Irranca-Davies: The information is as follows:
	 (a) My Department and the Scottish Executive have, in the past, commissioned research into industrial fishing. Although there are currently no specific projects being undertaken, the UK Government continue to support work on sandeels and their predators.
	Most recently, a major study by the Centre for Environment, Fisheries and Aquaculture Science which investigated the direct and indirect impacts of the sandeel fishery off the coast of eastern England was completed in March 2007. In addition, the Scottish Executive supported an EU-funded project: 'Interactions Between the Marine Environment, Predator Implications for Sustainable Sandeel Fisheries', which concluded before 2007.
	 (b) On the effect on the level of fish stocks of industrial fishing techniques, the UK, through the Scottish Government continues to support work on sandeels and their predators, through monitoring of the North east UK area closure. Local studies of cod, haddock and whiting predation on sandeels before and after the closure was introduced in 2000, found no evidence of an effect, although the reduction in fishing mortality did lead to an increase in the abundance of age one and older sandeels. The lack of a fishing effect probably had more to do with the difference in the age of sandeel taken by these predators and the fishery.
	The cod, haddock and whiting in this study mostly fed on young sandeels of the year, whereas the fishery targeted age one and older sandeels. The local abundance of cod and haddock in the study-region reflected wider North sea wide trends, suggesting that local conditions were not determining abundance. Had there been significant numbers of large cod and haddock in the region, then competition between the sandeel fishery and these species may have been more important, since the size and age of sandeels taken is limited by predator size.
	The UK will continue to monitor industrial fisheries in EU waters.

Fuel Oil: Recycling

Lembit �pik: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what his Department's policy is on encouraging the re-use of waste oils.

Dan Norris: DEFRA's policies on waste oils are set out in Waste Strategy for England 2007. We are currently considering the responses to the stage one consultation on the transposition of the revised Waste Framework Directive (2008/98/EC), including the provisions in article 21 on waste oils.

Incinerators

Stewart Jackson: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what his Department's policy on mass-burn incineration of household waste is.

Dan Norris: Government policy is to manage waste as far up the waste hierarchy as possible-with energy from waste ranking higher than landfill but below waste prevention, re-use, and recycling. The Government's view of incineration and similar technologies is that they form just one among several approaches, all of which are needed for sustainable and effective waste management.
	It is recognised that there will always be some waste streams that cannot be re-used, recycled or composted and recovering energy from that waste, including by incineration, results in less greenhouse gas emissions compared to the alternative of landfill. Producing energy from this waste, which would otherwise have gone to landfill, not only contributes to reducing carbon emissions, but also counts towards our renewable energy targets by displacing fossil fuel power generation.
	The choice in technology needs to reflect local circumstances, with reference to the relevant waste strategies and plans, so that proposed waste incineration plants are of an appropriate type and scale and do not prejudice the achievement of local, regional or national waste management targets.

Moorland: Environment Protection

Nigel Evans: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what steps his Department is taking to protect wildlife in areas of heather moorland.

Huw Irranca-Davies: Natural England is taking action to protect and manage heather moorland habitats and is also taking additional steps to recover threatened species. A total of 354,000 hectares of heather moorland (comprising blanket bog and upland heathlands) have been designated as Sites of Special Scientific Interest (SSSIs). On 1 March 2010, 91 per cent. of these SSSIs were in favourable or recovering condition (up from about 57 per cent. in September 2006). 95 per cent. of eligible heather moorland is under agri-environment agreement.
	In addition, about 40 heather moorland species have been listed as species of principal importance for the conservation of biological diversity under section 41 of the Natural Environment and Rural Communities Act 2006. Many of these species, including hen harrier, black grouse and juniper, benefit from targeted recovery plans.

Nanotechnology

Brian Iddon: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many entries have been registered under the voluntary reporting scheme for nanomaterials since its inception.

Dan Norris: A trial of the UK's voluntary reporting scheme for engineered nanomaterials was carried out between September 2006 and September 2008. DEFRA received 13 submissions to the scheme during this period. Although the scheme has now officially closed submissions are still accepted.

Nanotechnology

Brian Iddon: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs whether the Government plan to bring forward proposals for a mandatory reporting scheme for nanomaterials used in consumer products.

Dan Norris: As stated in the Government's June 2009 response to the Royal Commission for Environmental Pollution's December 2008 Report Novel Materials in the Environment: The Case of Nanotechnology, we recognise that, given increasing interest in this area, additional work to boost our understanding is required. Work is currently ongoing to define in more detail how any successor to the voluntary reporting scheme could effectively be introduced, including whether or not it should be mandatory.

Nanotechnology

Brian Iddon: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs when the Government plan to publish its Nanotechnology Strategy.

Dan Norris: The Government intend to publish their Nanotechnologies Strategy during March 2010.

Origin Marking: Israel

Bob Russell: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what assessment he has made of the effect of the European Court of Justice's ruling on goods from Jewish settlements in the occupied West Bank on his Department's policies on food imports.

Jim Fitzpatrick: The European Court of Justice's recent ruling in the case of C-386/08 (Brita-Gmbh) concerned the procedures which a EU member state's customs authority should follow in a case where imported goods are shown as being of Israeli origin, and preferential customs tariff treatment is claimed under the EC-Israel Association Agreement, but where there is reason to suppose that the goods in question did in fact originate in the Occupied Palestinian Territories (OPTs).
	This ruling will have no effect on DEFRA's policies on food imports originating in the OPTs, since the Court's ruling confirms the correctness of the procedures that are already operated in the UK by HM Revenue and Customs. There are no inconsistencies between the court's ruling and the technical guidance concerning the labelling of produce grown in the OPTs that was issued by DEFRA on 10 December 2009.

Renewable Energy: Fuel Oil

Roger Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what recent discussions his Department has had with representatives of the waste oil regeneration industry; and if he will make a statement.

Dan Norris: We continue to maintain regular contact with the waste oil industry on a variety of issues affecting the management of waste oil.
	Representatives of the waste oil processing industry are members of the Stakeholder Group relating to the transposition of the revised Waste Framework Directive (2008/98/EC), including the provisions in Article 4 on the waste hierarchy and Article 21 on waste oils. They were also involved in the Hazardous Waste Steering Group, which helped advise on proposals for a Strategy for Hazardous Waste Management in England.
	The Hazardous Waste Steering Group and the Waste Framework Stakeholder Group last met on 29 September and 11 November 2009 respectively.

Renewable Energy: Waste

Oliver Heald: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs 
	(1)  what discussions the joint working group on energy from waste policy plans to hold on regulatory barriers to energy from waste deployment;
	(2)  who has attended each meeting of the joint working group on energy from waste policy;
	(3)  which departments have officials on the joint working group on energy from waste policy.

Dan Norris: The Energy from Waste Project will consider the main factors affecting the deliverability of energy from waste plant. The project includes five workstreams on:
	(i) Potential volumes of waste that could be used to produce energy
	(ii) Technology choice
	(iii) Location and scale of plants, including planning considerations
	(iv) Financial issues affecting delivery of energy from waste plant
	(v) Communications.
	The Energy from Waste Project Board held its first meeting on 27 January, 2010 with officials from the following Government Departments and agencies attending:
	DEFRA
	Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC)
	Department for Transport (DfT)
	Department for Communities and Local Government (CLG)
	Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS)
	The Environment Agency.
	The Energy from Waste Project Board includes officials from the following Government Departments:
	DEFRA
	DECC
	DfT
	CLG
	BIS
	HM Treasury.

River Severn

Lembit �pik: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what research his Department has  (a) commissioned and  (b) evaluated on the effects of the dam on the River Severn at Shrewsbury on the flow of the River Severn and its tributaries in Montgomeryshire; and if he will make a statement.

Huw Irranca-Davies: The Environment Agency, in conjunction with Shropshire council, has assessed the potential benefits of combining a proposed road scheme with a flood storage area and dam in Shrewsbury to reduce flood risk along the River Severn.
	The aim was to discover whether the combination of both schemes could make the flood storage area and dam more viable. The work carried out has shown that there are no financial savings in having a combined scheme and there are no current plans to progress the construction of a dam in Shrewsbury.
	A hydraulic river model was constructed as part of this work and a copy of the report has been placed in the Library of the House.

Seas and Oceans: Environment Protection

Paddy Tipping: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs when he plans to publish the draft statement setting out the principles of an ecologically coherent network of marine protected areas under the Marine and Coastal Access Act 2009; and if he will make a statement.

Huw Irranca-Davies: The written statement to fulfil the requirement in Section 123(6) of the Marine and Coastal Access Act 2009 will be laid before Parliament by the Secretary of State on 10 or 11 March 2010.
	The statement will set out the principles and other matters that Government will follow when designating a network of Marine Protected Areas (MPAs). They include: the seven principles of ecological coherence which will underpin the network design; Government's commitment to an ecologically coherent network of MPAs by 2012; social and economic considerations; protection levels for MPAs including sites to allow recovery of damaged or diminished features; and links with other legislation such as the marine strategy framework directive.
	The Government believe the ecologically coherent network of MPAs created through the Act will represent a significant step towards our vision for clean healthy, safe, productive and biologically diverse oceans and seas, and increase resilience to climate change.

Slaughterhouses

Norman Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what recent assessment he has made of the investigations conducted by Animal Aid into practices at slaughterhouses; and if he will take steps to ensure that those establishments adhere to high animal welfare practice standards.

Jim Fitzpatrick: The Meat Hygiene Service (MHS), an Executive agency of the Food Standards Agency, enforces the Welfare of Animals (Slaughter or Killing) Regulations 1995 in slaughterhouses on behalf of DEFRA. Animal cruelty within a slaughterhouse is not tolerated by the MHS who take appropriate enforcement action if there are breaches of animal welfare legislation.
	Animal Aid passed to the MHS undercover footage taken in four abattoirs during 2009, where CCTV footage appeared to show evidence of animal cruelty by slaughterers at two slaughterhouses. In one of the slaughterhouses a slaughterer has had his licence revoked and the case has been referred for prosecution along with the operator of the plant. In the second two, slaughterers have had their licences revoked and a third slaughterer has been suspended. The case has been referred for investigation with a view to prosecution.

Trees: Urban Areas

Stewart Jackson: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what estimate the Forestry Commission has made of the  (a) initial and  (b) maintenance cost of planting and maintenance of an urban tree.

Huw Irranca-Davies: The Forestry Commission in England has made an estimate of the cost of planting a tree in an urban site in London as part of the London Trees and Woodlands Grant Scheme. This varies from between £250 for planting in a grass verge to £450 for planting in paved areas. Protective guarding of a tree can add £130. Maintaining a tree for the first three years, which includes watering, general maintenance and formative pruning is estimated at £300.

Waste Disposal

Stewart Jackson: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs in which Government Office regions  (a) regional waste awareness initiatives and  (b) waste prevention networks are in operation; and what funding has been provided for such activity in each region in the latest period for which figures are available.

Dan Norris: Waste awareness and prevention initiatives run in each Government office region. These vary widely across the country from those run solely for local authorities to arrangements covering a broader range of partners; the funding arrangement are equally varied. More details are available from individual Government offices.
	The Government-funded Waste and Resources Action Programme (WRAP) delivers the national 'Love Food Hate Waste' campaign. Information and resources are available for use by local government at a regional and local level as part of this campaign. In addition WRAP has provided advisory support to a number of regional waste prevention initiatives through its local authority support programme.

Waste Disposal: EC Action

David Anderson: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs when he plans to publish the final version of the End of Waste Protocol; and if he will make a statement.

Dan Norris: On 23 and 26 November 2009 the European Commission and Austria respectively commented under Article 8(2) of the Technical Standards Directive on the draft end-of-waste protocol for fuel produced from waste lubricating oil that the UK notified under Article 8(1) of the directive. The UK responded to both sets of comments on 15 February 2010. In doing so, it was confirmed that the UK intended to adopt the end-of-waste protocol on the basis notified to the Commission on 27 August 2009 and that the UK would communicate the definitive text to the Commission in compliance with Article 8(3) of the directive. The Environment Agency expects to publish the definitive text before the end of March 2010.

Water Charges: Voluntary Organisations

Francis Maude: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs with reference to his Department's press release of 14 July 2009, on surface water draining charges, what system of surface water charging for voluntary groups is in operation in each water company area.

Huw Irranca-Davies: Four of the 10 water and sewerage companies in England and Wales-Northumbrian Water, Severn Trent Water, United Utilities and Yorkshire Water-charge non-household customers for surface water drainage according to impermeable site area. The remaining six-Anglian Water, Southern Water, South West Water, Thames Water, Welsh Water and Wessex Water-charge for surface water drainage according to the rateable value of a premises and/or include the charge in their standing charges and/or volumetric charges.

TRANSPORT

Aviation: Exhaust Emissions

Norman Baker: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport what assessment he has made of the likely effect on airline profits on the inclusion of aviation in the EU Emissions Trading Scheme.

Paul Clark: A review of the available evidence found that, while some studies were suggesting that airlines could potentially pass on 100 per cent. of the costs of EU ETS allowances to passengers, other studies suggested that the level of cost pass on would depend on a number of factors, such as the level of competition faced on individual routes.
	The impact on airline profits in practice will only become apparent after aviation has joined the EU ETS from 2012.

Aviation: Exhaust Emissions

Norman Baker: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport what estimate he has made of the level of  (a) UK and  (b) EU carbon emissions from aviation in (i) 2004, (ii) 2006 and (iii) 2009; and what estimate he has made of each such level in (A) 2012 and (B) 2015.

Paul Clark: UK aviation carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions in 2004 and 2006 can be found at:
	http://www.decc.gov.uk/en/content/cms/statistics/climate _change/gg_emissions/uk_emissions/2008_final/2008_final.aspx
	The source of the data is AEA/Department of Energy and Climate Chance (DECC).
	The following table shows the Department's latest forecasts for total CO2 emissions from all flights departing from UK airports in 2009, 2012 and 2015.
	
		
			   Total CO 2  (million tonnes) 
			 2009 39.2 
			 2012 43.5 
			 2015 46.1 
			  Notes:  1. Data are for UK departures only (both international and domestic).  2. These forecasts refer to the central demand scenario and capacity scenario s12s2, as presented in UK Air Passenger Demand and CO2 Forecasts, January 2009.  3. These CO2 forecasts include freight, APU and a residual adjustment to ensure consistency with the DECC outturn estimate. 
		
	
	The Department does not collect or forecast EU level CO2 emissions data. Emissions inventories for other EU countries are available on the UNFCCC website. This can be found at:
	http://unfccc.int/national_reports/items/1408.php

Capita Group

Don Touhig: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport on how many occasions Capita Group plc tendered for contracts let by his Department in each of the last five years; how many such tenders were successful; how much his Department paid to Capita Group plc for the execution of contracts in each such year; how many contracts which terminate after 2010 Capita Group plc hold with his Department; and what the monetary value is of all outstanding contracts between his Department and Capita Group plc.

Chris Mole: The Department for Transport does not hold centrally information relating to tendering activity, contracts awarded and the values of such contracts and this could be provided only at disproportionate costs.
	However, following a search across the Department and its Executive agencies, it is known that Capita Group plc tendered and were awarded the following contracts/framework agreements:
	
		
			   Number of tenders  Number of contracts awarded 
			 2005 4 2 
			 2006 10 8 
			 2007 12 8 
			 2008 12 8 
			 2009 7 5

Departmental Buildings

Philip Hammond: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport how much his Department spent on office refurbishments in each year since its inception.

Chris Mole: The information requested can be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Departmental Internet

Oliver Heald: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport how many designs for its website his Department has commissioned since 2005.

Chris Mole: The Department last commissioned a new design for its corporate website:
	www.dft.gov.uk
	in 2005. The design work was commissioned as part of a larger project to implement a new Content Management System.

Departmental Legal Costs

Pete Wishart: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport how much his Department spent on external legal advice in  (a) 2008 and  (b) 2009.

Chris Mole: In the past two financial years the Department for Transport (including its agencies) has spent the following on external legal services:
	2007-08: £3,297,415.19
	2008-09: £12,410,668.11
	The reason for the significant difference in spend from 2007-08 to 2008-09 is due to change to the Department's accounting system in 2008 which culminated in some historical data not being available. Recovery of this data could have been obtained only at disproportionate cost.

Departmental Paper

Martin Horwood: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport what  (a) suppliers and  (b) brands of (i) paper and (ii) paper products his Department uses; and what his Department's policy is on the procurement of those materials.

Chris Mole: The Department for Transport and its Executive Agencies use the following suppliers and brands of paper and paper products:
	 Suppliers:
	Antalis, Banner Business Services, Howard Smith Paper, James McNaughton, Premier Paper Group, Robert Home Group, Taylor Brothers, The Paper Company, Unicorn Office Products, United and Viking Direct
	 Brands of office paper for printing and copying:
	Banner, EP4, Evolve, Premier Paper, Securi Monde, Steinbeis, Xerox
	 Brands of paper for printed publications:
	9 Lives, Cacoon, Green Coat, Evolution, Revive,
	 Brands of paper products:
	3M, 5 star, Adare, Avery, Basildon Bond, Cambridge, Conqueror, FT Print, Graffico, HP, Jiffy, Kleenex, MBA, New Guardian, Niceday, NP, Office Depot, Oxford, Paragon, Post-it, Q connect, RR Donnelly, Sasco, SMI, Stralfors, Taylor Brothers, Unicorn Office, Unique and Viking.
	The Department conducts its procurement in accordance with UK Government's value for money policies and principles, utilising collaborative arrangements where these are available and in accordance with the legal and regulatory framework. Where possible, the Department purchases recycled products that meet the current Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) 'Buy Sustainable Quick Wins' guidance.

Directly Operated Railways and East Coast Main Line Company

Stephen Hammond: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport 
	(1)  how much has been paid by  (a) and  (b) East Coast Trains for the use of office space in his Department since July 2009;
	(2)  for how long he expects to let office space in his Department to  (a) Directly Operated Railways and  (b) East Coast Trains.

Chris Mole: holding answer 1 March  2010
	From the 6 May, Directly Operated Railways will move from Department for Transport premises to offices in Kemble Street, London. In relation to the period up to this date, the value of use of office space in the Department for Transport was taken into account when Directly Operated Railways' grant was set on creation.
	In relation to East Coast I refer the hon. Gentleman to my answer of 25 February 2010,  Official Report, column 666W.

Driving Tests: Motorcycles

Mark Williams: To ask the Minister of State, Transport what casual sites for motorcycle testing have been brought into use since April 2009; and what the cost was of making each such site suitable for motorcycle testing.

Paul Clark: No casual sites have been brought into use since April 2009. There were 16 Vehicle and Operator Services Agency (VOSA) and six casual sites available to use when the new motorcycling test was implemented on 27 April 2009. Of these sites, 13 VOSA and four casual sites remain operational with five now having been replaced by permanent multi-purpose test centres (MPTCs).
	Other VOSA and casual sites will be replaced as permanent MPTCs become operational locally.
	The total cost of preparing and maintaining the VOSA and casual sites for use for module one motorcycle testing is forecast to be £2.5 million.

Driving: Licensing

Christopher Huhne: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport how many people  (a) over and (b) under retirement age in each police force area have had their driving licence withdrawn in each of the last five years.

Paul Clark: The information requested is not readily available and would incur disproportionate costs to gather. However, the following table provides the number of people  (a) over and  (b) at or below 65, whose driving licence has been withdrawn for the reasons quoted.
	
		
			   Medically withdrawn/refused  Disqualified  Revoked  Total 
			   (a)  (b)  (a)  (b)  (a)  (b)  (a)  (b) 
			 2009 9,979 15,632 2,658 132,945 740 73,386 13,377 221,963 
			 2008 9,328 12,718 3,297 153,787 805 88,230 13,430 254,735 
			 2007 8,833 11,038 3,894 168,954 640 71,916 13,367 251,908 
			 2006 7,757 9,588 4,152 174,695 436 61,692 12,345 245,975 
			 2005 6,070 7,351 2,534 79,388 306 33,31 1 8,910 120,050

Exhaust Emissions

Norman Baker: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport what estimate he has made of the total carbon dioxide emissions from shipping in the UK in the last 10 years; and what projection he has made of such emissions from shipping in the UK in the next  (a) 10,  (b) 20 and  (c) 50 years.

Sadiq Khan: Shipping carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions for the last 10 years can be found at:
	http://www.decc.gov.uk/en/content/cms/statistics/climate _chanqe/gg_emissions/uk_emissions/2008_final/2008_final.aspx
	The source of the data is AEA/Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC).
	Forecasts of carbon dioxide emissions from UK domestic shipping in 2010, 2015, 2020 and 2022 were included in the Department for Transport's Carbon Pathways Analysis report. This report is available to download from the Department's website at
	http://www.dft.gov.uk/pgr/sustainable/analysis.pdf
	Projections of reportable carbon dioxide emissions from international shipping for all years between now and 2022 were included in HM Treasury's Building a low-carbon economy report. This report is available from the HM Treasury website at
	http://www.hm-treasury.gov.uk/d/Budget2009/bud09_ carbon_budgets_736.pdf

Grimsby

Austin Mitchell: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport if he will set out, with statistical information related as directly as possible to Great Grimsby constituency, the effects of his Department's policies on that constituency since 1997.

Sadiq Khan: Our policies and legislation since 1997 have provided a new framework benefitting all local transport authorities. The framework gives greater certainty of funding, while encouraging more strategic transport planning with local consultation, and increasing local flexibility and discretion over resources. It has been accompanied by a significant increase in capital funding: support from the Department for transport investment in North East Lincolnshire, within which transport authority Great Grimsby falls, has more than doubled over the last decade.
	Investment in North East Lincolnshire council's local transport plan has delivered a number of improvements to the quality, safety and accessibility of the local transport network. Between 2004 and 2008, bus patronage per head of population increased by 19 per cent. and the number of people killed or seriously injured on the local highway network decreased by 13 per cent. in the period 2001-07.
	In 2002, North East Lincolnshire council received a total of £719,000 from the Department's Urban and Rural Bus Challenge funds to establish the Phone 'n' Ride community travel initiative. Phone 'n' Ride is a demand-responsive bus service for those members of the community who have difficulty accessing employment, education, healthcare and leisure services due to a lack of transport.
	In 2005, North East Lincolnshire council submitted a successful bid to the Department for 'Kickstart' revenue funding of improvements to the Grimsby and Cleethorpes bus network. The £523,000 award facilitated the introduction of high-frequency services on routes 13 and 14, linking the area's main residential estates with Grimsby and Cleethorpes town centres. It was accompanied by an investment of almost £2 million by Stagecoach in 23 new low-floor buses for the service.
	Following a successful bid by North East Lincolnshire council and First TransPennine Express, it was announced in April 2006 that Grimsby Town station would receive £53,000 to improve disabled access and facilities. The improvements, funded as part of the Department's Access for All Strategy, include an enlarged waiting room, improved flooring and lighting, and a new ticket window.

Local Government: Statistics

Stewart Jackson: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport what performance  (a) indicators and  (b) datasets outside the National Indicator Set local authorities are regularly required to provide to his Department.

Sadiq Khan: None.

M40: Repairs and Maintenance

Tony Baldry: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport what assessment he has made of the likely effects of the implementation of his Department's policy on the North West Bicester eco-town on the timing of the allocation of funding for improvement made by the Highways Agency on junction 9 of the M40 motorway.

Chris Mole: I recognise that current capacity constraints at junction 9 are directly inhibiting the wider potential for growth within the Bicester area.
	I wrote to the leader of Oxfordshire county council in November 2009 confirming that the Highways Agency is committed to an interim scheme, commencing in the spring of 2010-11, to improve the movement of traffic onto the A34 southbound from the M40 southbound at junction 9. The Department for Transport remains committed to deliver the proposed medium-term solution subject to the outcome of any forthcoming spending review.
	My officials are working closely with Cherwell district council and Oxfordshire county council in developing the transport aspects of their proposals and a planning application is expected to be submitted shortly. I expect that priority will be given to more sustainable transport options, as set out in the Planning Policy Statement on eco-towns published in July 2009, which is consistent with the key aims set out in Developing a Sustainable Transport System.

Motorways: Accidents

Norman Baker: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport how many accidents have taken place between motorway junctions where there is hard shoulder running in each of the last five years.

Chris Mole: Hard shoulder running was introduced on the M42 between J3A and J7 on 12 September 2006 and normally operates at peak travel times or when there is an incident.
	The accident data for the M42 J3a to 7 cover all personal injury accidents for the period to the end of 2008 and are as follows:
	
		
			   2004  2005  2006  2007  2008 
			 M42 J3a-J4 11 9 4 4 10 
			 M42 J4-J5 15 10 12 13 14 
			 M42 J5-J6 18 23 20 17 9 
			 M42 J6-J7 12 7 3 6 6 
			 Total 56 49 39 40 39 
		
	
	More significantly the rate of personal injury accidents has dropped from 5.1 per month to 1.8 since the implementation of this scheme.

Motorways: Road Traffic

Norman Baker: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport what estimate he has made of the cost to the public purse of hard shoulder running in the latest period for which figures are available.

Chris Mole: The estimated cost to the Highways Agency of hard shoulder running between Junctions 3a and 7 on the M42 is associated with the following four main areas of additional activity and cost.
	Additional advanced motorway indicators over the hard shoulder-estimated cost of annual maintenance is £25,000.
	Fixed CCTV cameras to monitor the hard shoulder-estimated costs of annual maintenance is £80,000.
	Control room staff to open, close and monitor use of hard shoulder running-estimated annual cost is £38,000.
	Additional traffic officer patrols to undertake pre-opening inspections of the hard shoulder and manage incidents-estimated annual cost of staff and vehicles is £66,000.
	There are several additional areas for which it is not possible to disaggregate costs including power, sweeping and salting of the emergency refuge areas. These costs are considered to be negligible.

Motorways: Standards

Norman Baker: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport what the average delay in minutes has been between motorway junctions where there is hard shoulder running in each of the last five years.

Chris Mole: Hard shoulder running was introduced on the M42 between Junction 3A and Junction 7 on 12 September 2006 and normally operates at peak travel times or when there is an incident.
	In measuring delay the Highways Agency defines a free flow theoretical reference speed. For the M42, this is approximately 66 mph. Delay is measured as the actual measured speed of traffic compared to this reference speed and is quoted as the delay per 10 vehicle kms.
	The following table shows the results for the M42 Junctions 3A to 7 for the last five years.
	
		
			  Delay per 10 vehicle km 
			  Minutes 
			   2005 total  2006 total  2007 total  2008 total  2009 total 
			 M42 between M42 J3A and M42 J3 (LM503) 0.33 0.42 0.35 0.44 0.43 
			 M42 between M42 J3 and M42 J3A (LM504) 0.53 0.67 0.51 0.64 0.42 
			 M42 between M42 J5 and M42 J4 (LM505) 1.00 1.36 1.58 1.33 1.04 
			 M42 between M42 J4 and M42 J5 (LM506) 1.38 1.65 1.38 1.46 1.14 
			 M42 between M42 J6 and M42 J5 (LM507) 1.26 1.56 1.67 1.38 1.41 
			 M42 between M42 J5 and M42 J6 (LM508) 1.31 1.56 1.43 1.32 1.06 
			 M42 between M42 J7 and M42 J6 (LM509) 1.58 1.69 1.54 1.46 1.56 
			 M42 between M42 J6 and M42 J7 (LM510) 1.32 1.47 1.33 1.31 1.03 
		
	
	The primary objective of managed motorway schemes is to improve journey time reliability. In the case of the M42 this has improved by 22 per cent. since the implementation of the scheme.

Official Engagements

Andrew Murrison: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport what ministerial engagements the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Transport has planned on each day until 6 May.

Chris Mole: I have accepted speaking engagements on the 9 March and 22 March. It is not usual practice to release details of future engagements other than confirmed speaking engagements.

Petrol: Ethanol

Greg Knight: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport if he will require all petrol containing ethanol to be labelled prominently as such at the fuel pump.

Sadiq Khan: Fuel pumps dispensing petrol containing more than 5 per cent. biofuel (including ethanol) are required to be labelled Not suitable for all vehicles: consult vehicle manufacturer before use by virtue of the Biofuel (Labelling) Regulations 2004 (SI 2004 No 3349). Where petrol contains more than 10 per cent. ethanol, an additional label indicating this will be required from 5 December 2010, by virtue of a forthcoming amendment to the 2004 Regulations, implementing a requirement of the EU renewable energy directive (2009/28/EC).

Railways: Bexley

David Evennett: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport what progress has been made on reducing overcrowding on passenger rail services from stations in the London borough of Bexley to London terminals.

Chris Mole: Southeastern has carried out a survey of crowding on trains and are currently looking at measures to address crowding on specific services.

Railways: Poole

Robert Syms: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport how much money his Department has spent on railway  (a) track and  (b) station improvements in Poole constituency in each year since 1997.

Chris Mole: This is an operational matter for Network Rail as the owner and operator of the national rail network. The hon. Member should contact Network Rail's chief executive at the following address for a response to his questions:
	Iain Coucher
	Chief Executive
	Network Rail
	Kings Place
	90 York Way
	London, N1 9AG.

Railways: Standards

Norman Baker: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport what information his Department holds on the number of trains which were  (a) cancelled and  (b) delayed by each train operating company in each of the last five years; and how many of those cancellations occurred on (i) peak, (ii) weekday off-peak and (iii) weekend services.

Chris Mole: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given on 27 January 2010,  Official Report, columns 880-82W, showing the number of trains cancelled and the number of trains arriving late at destination.
	Data on the number of trains which may have suffered a delay en route as opposed to arriving late at destination, are not held by the Department for Transport.
	Data are held recording the number of cancellations in peak hours for London and South East operators, and are given in the following table. The remaining data requested are not held by the Department.
	
		
			  Peak cancellations 
			  Train operating company  2004-05  2005-06  2006-07  2007-08  2008-09 
			 c2c 328 268 278 222 219 
			 Chiltern Railways 241 278 240 185 192 
			 First Capital Connect 983 1,069 962 773 1,067 
			 First Great Western 245 238 316 330 260 
			 London Midland 106 63 109 76 276 
			 London Overground 90 57 47 49 37 
			 National Express East Anglia 805 991 1,260 974 897 
			 South West Trains 881 877 945 582 981 
			 Southeastern 1,246 1,089 986 953 1,431 
			 Southern 1,108 911 801 652 938

Roads: Snow and Ice

Theresa Villiers: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport whether he has had discussions with the Secretary of State for Health in 2010 on the salt and grit supplies held by hospitals.

Sadiq Khan: As part of the collective response by the Government to the severe weather, a number of discussions have been held with ministerial colleagues during Cabinet level meetings convened on this matter.
	Furthermore, the salt suppliers are holding salt for distribution to non-highway users. They determine priorities for distributing this, separately from the Salt Cell. However, non-highway salt users may seek mutual aid arrangements with local authorities and others if they wish. In critical cases, where these arrangements are not working, health organisations are encouraged to raise the issue with the Department of Health.

Roads: Snow and Ice

Stewart Jackson: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport what information his Department holds on the quantity of salt held by each local authority; and for which local authorities his Department holds no up-to-date information.

Sadiq Khan: An updated table has been placed in the Libraries of the House, which shows how many tonnes of salt local authorities estimate they have available, according to the local authority salt audit returns the Department for Transport had received at 10 a.m. on 25 February.
	These figures provide a snapshot of one day and may not fully reflect the regional weather, salt delivery dates, weather preparedness or distribution practices.

Waterloo Station

Susan Kramer: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport if he will instruct BRB (Residuary) Ltd. to ensure that no commercial development takes place under the platforms of Waterloo International Terminal which would significantly delay bringing into use the former Eurostar platforms at Waterloo for domestic passengers.

Chris Mole: The Department for Transport is working closely with BRB (Residuary) Ltd. to ensure that the timing of any commercial development of the space below the platforms at Waterloo International station does not adversely impact upon any plans to bring the platforms into use for domestic passengers.

Waterloo Station

Susan Kramer: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport whether any commercial development is permitted to take place under the former Eurostar platforms at Waterloo; and whether Network Rail has permitted development rights to integrate the platforms into use for domestic passengers.

Chris Mole: Any commercial development under the former Eurostar platforms at Waterloo would be subject to planning permission from the local authority (LB Lambeth).
	Network Rail does not enjoy permitted development rights to integrate the platforms into use for domestic passengers as Waterloo International terminal is owned by British Railways Board (Residual) Limited.

Waterloo Station

Susan Kramer: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport what estimate his Department has made of the likely timetable for converting the former Waterloo International platforms for use for domestic passengers.

Chris Mole: The Department for Transport is currently in discussion with the British Railways Board (Residuary) Limited, Network Rail and Stagecoach South West Trains to establish what would be the most cost-effective way to integrate Waterloo International terminal into the domestic station that maximises benefits for the short, medium and long term.

HOME DEPARTMENT

Alcoholic Drinks: Fixed Penalties

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many penalty notices for disorder were issued to persons aged 16 and over for an offence of being drunk and disorderly in England and Wales in each of the last five years.

Alan Johnson: The number of persons issued with a penalty notice for disorder for drunk and disorderly related offences in England and Wales, from 2004 to 2008 is provided in the following table.
	
		
			  N umber of persons issued with a penalty notice for disorder for drunk and disorderly related offences in England and Wales, from 2004 to 2008( 1,)( )( 2,)( )( 3) 
			  Offences   2004  2005  2006  2007  2008 
			 Drunk and disorderly offences Penalty notices for disorder 29,106 40,176 46,268 49,062 45,849 
			 (1) The statistics relate to persons for whom these offences were the principal offences for which they were dealt with. When a defendant has been found guilty of two or more offences the principal offence is the offence for which the heaviest penalty is imposed. Where the same disposal is imposed for two or more offences, the offence selected is the offence for which the statutory maximum penalty is the more severe. (2) Data include the following offence descriptions and corresponding statutes: Being found drunk in a highway or other Public place whether a building or not, or a licensed premises. Licensing Act 1872 Sec 12. Any person who in any public place is guilty, while drunk, of disorderly behaviour. Criminal Justice Act 1967 Sec.91. (3) Every effort is made to ensure that the figures presented are accurate and complete. However, it is important to note that these data have been extracted from large administrative data systems generated by the courts, and police forces. As a consequence, care should be taken to ensure data collection processes and their inevitable limitations are taken into account when those data are used.  Source: Justice Statistics Analytical Services in the Ministry of Justice Ref: IOS 60-10

Arrests: Young People

Christopher Huhne: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department 
	(1)  how many people aged  (a) under 10,  (b) 10 to 12,  (c) 13 to 15 and  (d) 16 to 18 years old have been arrested for each offence in each police force area in each year since 1997;
	(2)  how many people aged  (a) under 18,  (b) 18 to 29,  (c) 30 to 59 and  (d) over 60 years old have been arrested for each category of offence by each police force in each year since 1997.

Alan Johnson: holding answer 1 March 2010
	 The arrests collection held by the Home Office covers arrests for recorded crime (notifiable offences) only, broken down at a main offence group level, covering categories such as violence against the person and robbery. The data are also broken down by age groups which are (a) aged under 10, (b) aged 10-17, (c) aged 18-20, (d) aged 21 and over, (e) age unknown and so we can only provide data in these age groups and not that which is requested.
	The data requested covering the period from 2000-01 to 2007-08 has been placed in the House Library. Data prior to 2000-01 are not available.
	Data for 2008-09 are due to be published in early April 2009-10.

Asylum: Newcastle upon Tyne

Jim Cousins: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what assessment he has made of the merits of the establishment of an asylum seeker reception centre in Newcastle upon Tyne; and what discussions he has had with the Strategic Migration Partnership and Newcastle-upon-Tyne City Council on such a proposal.

Phil Woolas: The UK Border Agency is proposing to open initial accommodation for asylum seekers in the North East. Agency staff discussed this proposal with its key partners in the North East in April 2009. These discussions included both the North East Strategic Migration Partnership and the North East Consortium for Asylum Support Services. In addition, the UK Border Agency's regional director for the North East, Yorkshire and the Humber discussed the proposal with the chief executive, Newcastle city council when they met on 22 February.
	UKBA launched a formal competition to provide initial accommodation in the North East with its target providers at the end of December 2009. An invitation to bid was sent to the North East Consortium for Asylum Support Services and the North East Strategic Migration Partnership was notified of the competition in January 2010.

Departmental Grants

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department to which faith-based organisations his Department has made grants in each of the last five years; and what the  (a) monetary value and  (b) purpose of the grant was in each case.

Alan Johnson: The Home Office funds a wide range of organisations to deliver outcomes related to Home Office objectives. Although it is not always possible to tell from the information available to us whether organisations would regard themselves as faith-based, the information set out in the table is based on those organisations where it is clear they are, and consider themselves to be, faith-based.
	The Department has made the following payments to faith-based organisations within the last five years:
	
		
			   Monetary value  
			  Recipient  Year  £  Purpose 
			 Street Pastors 2006-07 10,000 Diversionary and other community-based projects that work with young people at risk of involvement in gangs and the use of weapons 
			  2007-08 5,000  
			 
			 Peace Alliance 2006-07 10,000 London Week of Peace 
			  2007-08 75,000  
			  2008-09 75,000  
			 
			 Christian Police Association 2004-05 5,000 General funding towards association's aims and objectives (grant in Aid funding) 
			  2009-10 10,000  
			 
			 National Association of Muslim Police 2008-09 45,000 General funding towards association's aims and objectives (grant in Aid funding) 
			  2009-10 45,000  
			 
			 St. Luke's Parochial Trust 2009-10 54,000 Target hardening homes against burglary in Camden (under Securing Homes Action Against Burglary (SHAAB) grant stream) 
			 Peterborough Salvation Army 2009-10 21,000 Target hardening homes against burglary in Peterborough (under Securing Homes Action Against Burglary (SHAAB) grant stream)

Departmental Internet

Oliver Heald: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many designs for its website his Department has commissioned since 2005.

Phil Woolas: The Home Office has commissioned two redesigns since 2005.

Departmental Telephone Services

Francis Maude: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the  (a) average time to answer a call,  (b) average waiting time for members of the public during a call,  (c) percentage of calls dropped or not answered and  (d) average length of calls was in call centres run by his Department and each of its agencies in the latest period for which figures are available.

Phil Woolas: The Core Home Office does not run any call centres. Please see the information requested in the following table in respect of the Home Office Executive Agencies:
	
		
			   United Kingdom Border Agency  Criminal Records Bureau  Identity and Passport Service 
			 Average time to answer a call 5 minutes 45 seconds 9 seconds Calls are answered on second ring by automated response 
			 Average waiting time for members of the public during a call 6 minutes 54 seconds 7 seconds 10 seconds to speak to agency after selecting from automated response 
			 Percentage of calls dropped or not answered 26.7 per cent. 0.80 per cent. 1.5 per cent. 
			 Average length of calls 4 minutes 02 seconds 2 minutes 45 seconds 4 minutes 30 seconds 
		
	
	The figures provided in the above table for UKBA and CRB are based on monthly figures available for December 2009. Figures for IPS provided are based on averages from monthly returns for Authentication. By Interview (ABI) and Adviceline calls.
	UKBA have made improvements to their procedures for answering calls over the past six months. There is an action plan in place to deliver further improvements.

Deportation: Commonwealth

Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many people from each Commonwealth country have been deported in (a) each of the last three years and  (b) 2010 to date.

Phil Woolas: The following table shows the number of nationals of each Commonwealth country removed or departed voluntarily, 2007 to 2009. Figures for 2010 are not currently available. Statistics for the first quarter of 2010 will be published on the 27 May 2010.
	The Home Office publishes statistics on the number of persons removed or departed voluntarily from the UK on a quarterly and annual basis, which are available from the Library of the House and from the Home Office's Research, Development and Statistics website at:
	http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/rds/immigration-asylum-stats.html
	
		
			  Removals and voluntary departures of Commonwealth nationals from the United Kingdom( 1,2) , by country of nationality( 3) , 2007 to 2009( 4,7) 
			  Number of departures 
			  Country of nationality  2007  2008( 7)  2009( 7) 
			 Antigua and Barbuda 65 35 40 
			 Australia 655 680 670 
			 Bahamas 10 10 10 
			 Bangladesh 1,310 1,850 1,200 
			 Barbados 75 95 80 
			 Belize 15 15 10 
			 Botswana 80 55 70 
			 Brunei 5 10 10 
			 Cameroon 365 235 235 
			 Canada 795 845 785 
			 Cyprus 10 5 * 
			 Dominica 60 50 50 
			 Fiji(5) 20 20 20 
			 Gambia 230 185 150 
			 Ghana 1,040 1,350 980 
			 Grenada 90 85 85 
			 Guyana 60 55 50 
			 India 3,965 5,320 5,740 
			 Jamaica 1,570 1,625 1,105 
			 Kenya 330 360 365 
			 Kiribati - - 5 
			 Lesotho 15 25 15 
			 Malawi 300 375 495 
			 Malaysia 2,065 2,040 1,410 
			 Maldives 10 10 15 
			 Malta * * * 
			 Mauritius 660 760 665 
			 Mozambique 10 15 15 
			 Namibia 250 170 150 
			 Nauru 5 - * 
			 New Zealand 225 260 260 
			 Nigeria 3,500 3,660 2,890 
			 Pakistan 3,895 3,160 2,990 
			 Papua New Guinea 5 * 5 
			 Rwanda(6) 35 30 30 
			 Samoa * * 5 
			 Seychelles 75 40 40 
			 Sierra Leone 255 190 120 
			 Singapore 115 120 100 
			 Solomon Islands 5 - - 
			 South Africa 1,900 1,645 1,290 
			 Sri Lanka 775 705 695 
			 St. Kitts and Nevis 30 20 20 
			 St. Lucia 165 160 115 
			 St. Vincent and the Grenadines 90 80 75 
			 Swaziland 40 45 30 
			 Tanzania 155 165 170 
			 Tonga 10 10 10 
			 Trinidad and Tobago 350 310 270 
			 Tuvalu - - * 
			 Uganda 425 455 390 
			 Vanuatu 5 - - 
			 Zambia 120 140 140 
			 Commonwealth total 26,230 27,480 24,080 
			 (1) Includes enforced removals, persons departing voluntarily after notifying the UK Border Agency of their intention to leave prior to their departure, persons leaving under Assisted Voluntary Return Programmes run by the International Organization for Migration, persons who it has been established left the UK without informing the immigration authorities and non-asylum cases refused entry at port and subsequently removed. (2) Figures include dependants. (3) Includes Commonwealth member states as at 25 February 2010. the full list is available from the Commonwealth Secretariat website at: www.thecommonwealth.org (4) Figures rounded to the nearest five (- = 0, * = one or two) and may not sum to the totals shown because of independent rounding. (5) Following the decisions taken by the Commonwealth Ministerial Action Group on 31 July 2009, Fiji Islands was suspended from membership of the Commonwealth on 1 September 2009. (6) Rwanda joined the Commonwealth in November 2009. (7) Provisional figures. Removals and voluntary departures recorded on the system as at the dates on which the data extracts were taken. Figures will under record due to data cleansing and data matching exercises that take place after the extracts are taken.

Deportation: Offenders

James Clappison: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department 
	(1)  how many foreign national offenders who have been subject to the  (a) early removal and  (b) facilitated return scheme have been (i) charged with and (ii) convicted of a further offence;
	(2)  what the average length of custodial sentence has been of a foreign national prisoner participating in the  (a) early removal and  (b) facilitated return scheme;
	(3)  how many foreign national prisoners of each nationality have participated in the  (a) early removal and  (b) facilitated return scheme in each year since their inception;
	(4)  what the monetary value of the average financial package received by foreign national prisoners is as a result of participation in the  (a) early removal and  (b) facilitated return scheme;
	(5)  how many foreign national prisoners participating in the  (a) early removal and  (b) facilitated return scheme were serving a custodial sentence of (i) four years or less, (ii) three years or less and (iii) two years or less at the latest date for which figures are available.

Phil Woolas: holding answer 22 February 2010
	All foreign nationals subject to removal will be considered by National Offender Management Service under the early removals scheme (ERS), which allows for early removal up to a maximum of 270 days prior to the halfway point of the sentence, subject to the serving of a requisite period. Since 2008, the UKBA has removed approximately 11,000 foreign national prisoners. Of these, approximately a quarter were removed before the end of the sentence under the ERS and approximately 30 per cent. were removed under the facilitated returns scheme.
	We do not publish a breakdown by nationality of the foreign national prisoners removed or deported from the UK. Information on total removals and voluntary departures from the UK by nationality is published quarterly. The latest can be found at:
	http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/rds/pdfs09/immiq309 supp1.xls#'TableF'!A1
	Of those removed directly from prison under ERS since 2008, the average sentence length was between three and four years and approximately two-thirds were serving a sentence of less than four years.
	Of those removed from the UK under the FRS scheme since 2008, the average sentence length was between two and three years and approximately three-quarters were serving a sentence of less than four years.
	This is taken from provisional management information and subject to change. Data from before 2008 could be obtained only by referencing individual case files. This would be at disproportionate cost.
	In both 2008 and between quarters 1 and 3 of 2009 less than three-quarters removed under FRS claimed the reintegration package on return and of those that did, the average amount received was less than £2,500 for 2008 and £3,500 for quarters 1 to 3 of 2009. There is no financial package associated with ERS.
	All foreign national prisoners are entered on the watch list when removed so checks can be made to prevent those who are barred and those who have no right from entering the UK. To provide information on foreign nationals who have been removed and gone on to re-offend would require the examination of individual records which would incur disproportionate cost.

Electronic Government: International Cooperation

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what work  (a) his Department,  (b) the Identity and Passport Service and  (c) each of his Department's other agencies has carried out with or for Project STORK in each of the last five years.

Alan Johnson: Project STORK started in June 2008 and the Identity and Passport Service is leading the UK contribution to the project. Some preparatory work was undertaken from 2007 until the formal start of the project. During this time work on the project has fallen into two phases. The first has been analysis and design to enable technical implementation and meet legal requirements. The second is the implementation of a number of pilot projects, starting later this year.

Entry Clearances: Skilled Workers

Frank Field: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department pursuant to the answer of 8 December 2009,  Official Report, columns 221-22W, on entry clearances, how many permits under Tier 2 general were issued in each month of 2009.

Phil Woolas: holding answer 25 February 2010
	 The following table provides detail of the numbers of in-country grants of leave to remain and out of country visas issued under Tier 2 (General) of the Points Based System in each month of 2009.
	
		
			   Tier 2 (General) 
			   In country  Out of country 
			 January 168 147 
			 February 566 305 
			 March 772 453 
			 April 687 557 
			 May 1,032 756 
			 June 1,356 883 
			 July 1,636 886 
			 August 1,561 1,078 
			 September 1,191 977 
			 October 1,201 856 
			 November 1,136 821 
			 December 1,275 839 
			 Total 12,581 8,558 
		
	
	The table above is based on approved main applications only. This data is not provided under National Statistics protocols. It has been derived from local management information and is therefore provisional and subject to change.

Human Trafficking

Anthony Steen: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many individuals waited between their first application to the National Referral Mechanism and receiving their conclusive grounds decisions for  (a) up to seven days,  (b) eight to 45 days,  (c) 46 days to three months,  (d) three to six months and  (e) over six months in the latest period for which figures are available.

Phil Woolas: holding answer 1 March 2010
	 Between 1 April 2009 and 31 December 2009, 132 decisions have been made at the conclusive grounds stage. From the date of referral  (a) no conclusive grounds decision were released in the first seven days,  (b) 24 were released in eight to 45 days,  (c) 65 in 46 days to three months,  (d) 39 in three to six months and  (e) four took over six months.

Human Trafficking

Anthony Steen: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the  (a) average and  (b) maximum number of case owners is in respect of each potential human trafficking case that has been referred through the National Referral Mechanism since 1 April 2009.

Phil Woolas: holding answer 1 March 2010
	 The majority of National Referral Mechanism cases are assessed by two officers. Upon referral, a case will be allocated to a competent authority case owner who will decide if someone is a victim of trafficking. Before the decision is released it will then be considered by a second person, normally a senior competent authority, to quality assure the decision.
	In cases where a referral has been made by an external agency such as the police or local authority, and where there is an immigration issue but the person is not yet known to UKBA, the UK Human Trafficking Centre (UKHTC) will make the reasonable grounds decision and then pass the case to the UKBA Competent Authority for the conclusive grounds decision. In these circumstances cases will be considered by four officers at various stages of the NRM process.
	There will be instances where a case is assigned to a competent authority who becomes unavailable part way through consideration due to illness or a change in role. These circumstances are rare but where they occur they will result in the case being reallocated to another case owner.

Human Trafficking

Anthony Steen: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how much time elapsed between the asylum interview and a conclusive grounds decision in respect of the case of each potential victim of human trafficking referred to the National Referral Mechanism on the latest date for which figures are available.

Phil Woolas: holding answer 1 March 2010
	The National Referral Mechanism (NRM) for identifying victims of human trafficking includes a decision on whether a person is conclusively found to be a victim of trafficking. This is separate from the asylum system, which involves an assessment of whether someone has a well founded fear of persecution under the 1951 Geneva Convention.
	It will be under a particular set of circumstances where there has been an asylum application leading to an asylum interview as well as a conclusive grounds trafficking decision for the same individual. Moreover the timing of the separate processes is not directly linked. Where an asylum application is made, it can be before, during or after a referral and conclusive grounds decision under the NRM.
	The following is a table of cases where there has been an asylum interview and a conclusive grounds decision under the NRM with their respective dates:
	
		
			  Case number  Date of asylum interview  Date of conclusive grounds decision 
			 1 6 April 2009 19 April 2009 
			 2 6 April 2009 30 June 2009 
			 3 15 April 2009 17 March 2009 
			 4 5 May 2009 17 September 2009 
			 5 1 May 2009 24 August 2009 
			 6 30 April 2009 8 July 2009 
			 7 6 May 2009 11 June 2009 
			 8 18 May 2009 16 July 2009 
			 9 8 October 2009 13 November 2009 
			 10 5 August 2009 23 October 2009 
			 11 12 March 2009 15 October 2009 
			 12 2 March 2009 17 September 2009 
			 13 8 April 2009 17 June 2009 
			 14 27 March 2009 24 August 2009 
			 15 9 June 2009 29 September 2009 
			 16 24 August 2009 27 October 2009 
			 17 22 September 2009 2 October 2009 
			 18 22 August 2009 16 September 2009 
			 19 25 June 2009 9 September 2009 
			 20 3 February2009 29 October 2009 
			 21 2 March 2009 29 September 2009 
			 22 24 August 2009 11 November 2009 
			 23 26 August 2009 3 September 2009 
			 24 9 August 2007 14 December 2009 
			 25 3 November 2009 20 November 2009 
			 26 7 September 2009 30 October 2009 
			 27 14 September 2009 27 November 2009 
			 28 7 August 2009 7 April 2009 
			 29 22 July 2009 15 July 2009 
			 30 4 August 2009 10 November 2009 
			 31 24 July 2009 19 August 2009 
			 32 28 April 2009 3 July 2009 
			 33 10 September 2009 5 August 2009 
			 34 5 August 2009 2 December 2009 
			 35 3 September 2009 28 September 2009 
			 37 16 September 2009 23 November 2009 
			 38 7 April 2009 3 December 2009 
			 39 10 February2009 1 December 2009 
			 40 29 October 2009 4 December 2009 
			 41 14 July 2009 1 October 2009 
			 42 22 February 2006 14 December 2009 
			 43 11 February 2009 14 August 2009 
			 44 17 July 2009 3 November 2009 
			 45 14 August 2009 20 November 2009 
			 46 27 August 2009 23 October 2009 
			 47 14 July 2009 4 November 2009 
			 48 17 September 2008 24 July2009 
			 49 19 November 2009 1 December 2009 
			 50 17 November 2009 30 October 2009 
			 51 9 February 2009 22 June 2009 
			 52 17 July 2009 30 October 2009 
			 53 30 July 2009 14 August 2009 
			 54 3 November 2009 26 November 2009 
			 55 20 January 2010 16 December 2009

Identity and Passport Service

Stewart Jackson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what planning applications the Identity and Passport Service has submitted in the last 18 months; and in respect of which addresses.

Meg Hillier: The Identity and Passport Service has submitted two planning applications as detailed in the following table:
	
		
			  Date  Address  Planning reference  Detail  Status 
			 18 May 2009 Aragon Court, Northminster Road, Peterborough, Cambridgeshire, PE1 1QG 09/00544/FUL Installation of two roof mounted heat pump units Granted in full. 
			 8 February 2010 Law Society House, 90-106 Victoria  St. Belfast BT1 3JZ Z/2010/0106/F New external louvers to rear elevation and roof top plant to existing office accommodation This application has been checked for completeness and is considered to be valid. The application will now be subject to: neighbour notification, advertising, consultation with statutory agencies, and if necessary, other organisations and a site inspection.

Identity and Passport Service: Manpower

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many people worked for the Identity and Passport Service  (a) in 2006 and  (b) at the latest date for which figures are available; and how many are projected to work for it in 2015.

Alan Johnson: As published in the 2006-07 Annual Report, the average number of employees on the Agency payroll during the year ending 31 March 2007 was 3,619
	The latest published figures are also available in the 2008-09 Annual Report which shows that the average number of employees on the Agency payroll during that year was 4,078. This figure includes the GRO staff who joined the Agency from 1 April 2008.
	IPS does not have a projected headcount for 2015.

Identity Cards

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what  (a) Government departments,  (b) non-governmental public bodies and  (c) other organisations (i) have and (ii) are planned to have access to information held on the national identity database.

Alan Johnson: No organisation will have direct access to information recorded on the National Identity Register, with or without the consent of the individual. The Identity Cards Act 2006, and secondary legislation made there under, sets out who may be provided with information from an individual's entry on the register and under what circumstances.

Identity Cards

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will make it his policy not to introduce compulsory identity cards.

Alan Johnson: Government policy is that Identity Cards are voluntary. The Prime Minister has made it clear that there will be no legislation to make Identity Cards compulsory for British citizens in the next Parliament. Identity cards are all about personal choice and the introduction of identity cards, which has now started for British citizens, is on a voluntary basis.

Identity Cards: EU Action

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the nature is of the relationship between the Identity and Passport Service and Project STORK.

Alan Johnson: holding answer 25 February 2010
	 The Identity and Passport Service is leading the UK contribution to Project Stork as a member of a consortium within the EU who are working together to pilot a cross border solution for the delivery of e-services. The project is part of the European Union Competitiveness and Innovation Framework Programme.

Illegal Immigrants: Employment

Stewart Jackson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the name and address is of each business the UK Border Agency has fined for hiring illegal immigrants in the last 24 months.

Phil Woolas: Since the introduction of civil penalties which came into effect for those employed on, or after 29 February 2008, a total of 3,709 notices of liability for a civil penalty to the period 31 January 2010, have been issued to employers hiring illegal workers. These data are derived from local management information and are therefore provisional and subject to change. It is not practical to list the names and addresses of all those employers but details of employers where the appeal process against service of a notice of liability for a civil penalty has been fully exhausted in the last quarter can be found on the UK Border Agency website at the following link:
	www.ukba.homeoffice.gov.uk/sitecontent/documents/employersandsponsors/listemployerspenalties/
	The information is listed by region and includes the name of the business, the town or city where it is located, the postcode of the business, the number of illegal workers found to be working illegally and the amount of the civil penalty imposed.

Immigration Controls

Frank Field: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many Certificates of Sponsorship have been granted to employers under  (a) Tier 2 general and  (b) Tier 2 ICT to date; and how many such certificates for the second year of Tier 2 of the points-based system remain under consideration.

Phil Woolas: holding answer 24 February 2010
	 As at 21 February 2010 the number of Certificates of Sponsorship (CoS) assigned to employers under Tier 2 (General) is 36,140(1) and the number assigned for Intra-company transfer is 40,980(1).
	Information on the number of certificates for the second year of Tier 2 which remain under consideration is not available.
	(1) These figures are not provided under National Statistics protocols and have been derived from local management information. They are therefore provisional and subject to change.

Local Government Finance

Stewart Jackson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what datasets not included in the National Indicator Set local authorities are required to submit to  (a) his Department and  (b) its agencies.

David Hanson: The Home Office does not place any statutory obligations on local authorities to submit, for either performance management or monitoring purposes, any datasets to the department or its agencies, other than the National Indicator Set.

Members: Correspondence

Michael Spicer: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when he expects to reply to the email from the hon. Member for West Worcestershire, dated 17 December 2009, on asylum seekers (reference: M27601/9).

Phil Woolas: holding answer 1 March 2010
	 I replied to the hon. Member's e-mail under reference M27605/9 on 19 January 2010.
	I will arrange despatch of a further copy of that reply.

Metropolitan Police

Gordon Prentice: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will make it his policy to review the process by which senior police officers in the Metropolitan Police are appointed; and if he will make a statement.

David Hanson: The Government are supportive of the Commissioner having a strong role in appointments. The Policing and Crime Act 2009 reinforces this by making it a statutory obligation for the Metropolitan Police Authority to consult the Commissioner in making senior appointments. This process will be kept under review.

Passports: Fraud

Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many fraudulent passport applications were made in 2009; and how many of those applications involved  (a) identity theft and  (b) false declarations where the individual was otherwise entitled to a passport.

Meg Hillier: IPS estimates that in the calendar year 2009 there were 13,396 fraudulent passport applications. The number of confirmed frauds detected in 2009 was around 8,600 of which 167 involved identity theft. IPS does not routinely collate data where a false declaration has been made where the applicant was otherwise entitled to a passport.

Police: Bureaucracy

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department 
	(1)  what estimate he has made of the proportion of police officer time spent on paperwork in each year since 1997;
	(2)  what estimate he has made of the proportion of police officer time spent on beat patrol in each year since 1997;
	(3)  what estimate he has made of the proportion of police officer time spent on patrol  (a) on foot and  (b) in cars in each year since 1997.

Alan Johnson: Information on time spent on patrol and paperwork was collected between 2003-04 and 2007-08 as part of the frontline policing measure and is set out in the following table. Information was not collected on time spent on patrol in cars and on foot. To reduce paperwork burdens on police officers the collection of data about time spent by officers on police activities ceased after 2007-08 in response to the recommendations by Sir David Normington in his review of data burdens placed by the Government on the police service published in February 2009.
	The figure for time spent on patrol does not include everything done by an officer engaged in frontline policing. It only measures the time an officer is engaged on no other activity but patrol, for example as soon as they respond to an incident they are counted against that activity and not patrol. It is therefore inappropriate to look at the patrol element in isolation from the rest of the frontline policing measure.
	Policing necessarily requires a degree of paperwork: to ensure accountability in the use of powers, prepare case files, and take witness statements. Non-incident paperwork includes handling complaints. All of these activities are part of providing a modern, effective and accountable police service.
	
		
			  Time spent on patrol and paperwork 2003-04 to 2007-08 
			  Percentage 
			   Total time spent on paperwork  Time spent on incident-related paperwork  Time spent on non incident related paperwork  Time spent on patrol  Frontline policing measure 
			 2003-04 20.1 10.3 9.8 14.2 62.1 
			 2004-05 18.4 9.9 8.5 15.3 62.6 
			 2005-06 19.3 10.8 8.5 14.0 63.1 
			 2006-07 19.9 11.4 8.5 13.6 64.2 
			 2007-08 21.7 12.4 9.3 13.8 64.9

Police: Bureaucracy

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what estimate he has made of the proportion of police officer time spent on health and safety-related activities in each year since 1997.

Alan Johnson: Information relating to the proportion of time spent on 'health and safety-related activities' is not held centrally.
	The health, safety and welfare of police officers is the responsibility of the chief officer of each individual police force.

Prison Sentences: Deportation

Dominic Grieve: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many prisoners from  (a) Ireland and  (b) each other European Economic Area country serving mandatory life sentences have been deported or removed in each of the last five years.

Phil Woolas: h olding answer 2 March 2010
	Since 2007, the UK Border Agency has removed or deported over 15,000 foreign national offenders. Of those removed or deported, less than three in every thousand previously served a mandatory life sentence.
	Information from before this period could be obtained only by reviewing individual records. This would be a disproportionate cost.
	As a general rule, it is our policy not to disclose the volume or characteristics of those removed to specific countries as it would jeopardise our diplomatic relations. This exemption would normally include EEA countries but, in the case of the Irish Republic and consistent with the special relationship that exists between the UK and the Republic of Ireland, I can confirm that, approximately 30 Irish national prisoners have been removed since 2007.

CHILDREN, SCHOOLS AND FAMILIES

Cadet Forces

Michael Gove: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many pupils at  (a) grammar,  (b) comprehensive and  (c) Academy schools were members of cadet forces in the last year for which figures are available.

Kevan Jones: I have been asked to reply.
	The information required is not held in the format requested. The data provided reflects only the category of 'State' schools (noting that for the purposes of Combined Cadet Force (CCF) data collated by MOD, all other schools are categorised as Independent).
	As at 1 April 2009, and subject to the caveats mentioned above, there were 7,579 School pupils who were members of their State School's Combined Cadet Force. However, given that the majority of Cadets are members of a community-based Cadet unit, it is estimated that some 90,000 cadets are state school pupils. In the same timeframe there were some 130,000 cadets overall. It should also be noted that there are 25 known partnerships where Independent Schools with CCFs provide cadet places to neighbouring State schools; for these partnerships it is not possible to identify the numbers of State School cadets.
	Full statistics on cadet forces can be found on the Defence Analytical Services and Advice organisation's website in their Tri-Service Publication (TSP) 7:
	www.dasa.mod.uk

Children: Day Care

Stewart Jackson: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what steps his Department and its predecessors have taken to reduce the cost of child care to parents and carers in London since 2005.

Dawn Primarolo: As a result of changes introduced since 2004, all families in London (as elsewhere in England) with three and four-year-olds are entitled to 12.5 hours of free early learning and child care per week, and this will rise to 15 hours per week from September 2010. Since September 2009, all local authorities in London have also received funding of 10 hours of free early learning and child care per week to their 15 per cent. most disadvantaged two-year-olds.
	Parents in London can also receive support for child care costs through the tax credits system. In 2006, the threshold of costs that were available to parents was increased from 70 per cent. to 80 per cent. In London the number of families benefiting increased by over 12,000 between 2004-05 and 2007-08 (the latest year for which figures are available).
	From 2005 to 2009, a joint initiative by the Government and the London Development Agency, the London Childcare Affordability Pilots 2005, offered parents more affordable and flexible child care places. At its peak the pilot provided over 6,000 subsidised flexible day care places.
	Since 2009 the Childcare Affordability Pilots have been trialling with London families two possible improvements to the support for child care costs that they receive through the child care element of working tax credit. The pilots are assessing the impact on child care take up of offering families 100 per cent. of their child care costs up to £215 per week for one child rather than the usual £140; and, for families with a disabled child, paying 80 per cent. of their child care costs up £300 per week for one child. Both strands offer up to £350 per week if parents have more than one child.

Children's Centres: South West

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many children's centres are  (a) open and  (b) planned to be opened in the next 12 months at each location in each local authority area in the south west.

Dawn Primarolo: The table setting out the number of Sure Start Children's Centres that have  (a) opened and  (b) planned to be opened in the next 12 months at each location in each local authority area in the south west as at 31 December 2009, has been placed in the Libraries.

Class Sizes: Salford

Hazel Blears: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what the average class size in schools in Salford was in  (a) 1997 and  (b) 2009.

Diana Johnson: The average class size in maintained primary schools in Salford constituency was 26.0 in 1997 and 24.6 in 2009; the figures for state funded secondary schools were 21.4 and 18.4 respectively.
	Figures include middle schools as deemed. City technology colleges and academies are included under secondary.

Pre-school Education: Leeds

Greg Mulholland: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many  (a) free nursery and  (b) pre-school places were available for children aged (i) three and (ii) four years old in Leeds North West constituency in each year since 1997.

Dawn Primarolo: Table 1 shows the number of part-time equivalent places filled by three and four-year-olds in Leeds North West constituency from 2004 to 2009.
	The Department publishes information on the part-time equivalent number of free early education places filled by three and four-year-olds in maintained, private, voluntary and independent providers. Information on the number of pre-school places is not separately available. Part-time equivalent places are derived by counting children taking up 12 and a half hours per week as one place, 10 hours per week as 0.8 places, seven and a half hours per week as 0.6 places, five hours per week as 0.4 places and two and a half hours per week as 0.2 places. Data at parliamentary constituency level are not available prior to 2004.
	
		
			  Table 2: Part-time equivalent number of free early education places( 1,)( )( 2,)( )( 3)  filled by three and four-year-olds( 4) , p arliamentary constituency: Leeds North West, position in January each year 
			   Three-year-olds  Four-year-olds 
			 2004 570 720 
			 2005 590 600 
			 2006 600 710 
			 2007 660 690 
			 2008 710 650 
			 2009 760 700 
			 (1) A place is equal to 12.5 hours (five sessions) and can be filled by more than one child.  (2) Figures are rounded to the nearest 10.  (3) Prior to 2004, information on early education places was derived from returns made by local authorities as part of the nursery education grant (NEG) data collection exercise. These data were collected at local authority level, therefore data for this parliamentary constituency is not available prior to 2004.  (4) Age of all children taken at 31 December in the previous calendar year.   Source:  Early Years Census and School Census. 
		
	
	The latest figures on early education places for three and four-year-olds in England were published in Statistical First Release (SFR) 11/2009 Provision for children under five years of age in England: January 2009, available on the Department's website:
	http://www.dcsf.gov.uk/rsgateway/DB/SFR/s000848/index.shtml

Pupil Exclusions

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families pursuant to the answer of 22 February 2010,  Official Report, column 312W, on National Safeguarding Delivery Unit: standards, how many pupils received more than  (a) 15 and  (b) 20 fixed period exclusions in each local authority area in (i) 2006-07 and (ii) 2007-08.

Diana Johnson: The requested information is shown in the following table.
	
		
			  Primary, secondary and special schools( 1,)( )( 2,)( )( 3)  number of times pupil enrolments were excluded for a fixed period( 4)  2006/07 and 2007/08 
			   2006/07  2007/08 
			   Pupils with more than  15 exclusions  Pupils with more than 20 exclusions  Pupils with more than 15 exclusions  Pupils with more than 20 exclusions 
			 City of London 0 0 0 0 
			 Camden 0 0 0 0 
			 Greenwich x 0 x x 
			 Hackney 0 0 0 0 
			 Hammersmith and Fulham 0 0 0 0 
			 Islington 0 0 0 0 
			 Kensington and Chelsea 0 0 0 0 
			 Lambeth x x x 0 
			 Lewisham 0 0 0 0 
			 Southwark x 0 0 0 
			 Tower Hamlets 0 0 0 0 
			 Wandsworth 0 0 0 0 
			 Westminster 0 0 x 0 
			 Barking and Dagenham 0 0 0 0 
			 Barnet 0 0 0 0 
			 Bexley 0 0 0 0 
			 Brent x 0 0 0 
			 Bromley 10 x x 0 
			 Croydon 0 0 0 0 
			 Ealing 0 0 0 0 
			 Enfield x x x x 
			 Haringey x 0 0 0 
			 Harrow 0 0 x 0 
			 Havering 0 0 0 0 
			 Hillingdon 0 0 0 0 
			 Hounslow 0 0 0 0 
			 Kingston upon Thames 0 0 0 0 
			 Merton x x 0 0 
			 Newham 0 0 0 0 
			 Redbridge x 0 x x 
			 Richmond upon Thames 0 0 0 0 
			 Sutton 0 0 x 0 
			 Waltham Forest x x 0 0 
			 Birmingham 10 10 x 0 
			 Coventry x 0 0 0 
			 Dudley x x x 0 
			 Sandwell 0 0 0 0 
			 Solihull 0 0 x 0 
			 Walsall 0 0 0 0 
			 Wolverhampton x x 0 0 
			 Knowsley 0 0 0 0 
			 Liverpool 0 0 0 0 
			 St. Helens 0 0 0 0 
			 Sefton 0 0 0 0 
			 Wirral 0 0 0 0 
			 Bolton x x 0 0 
			 Bury 0 0 x 0 
			 Manchester x 0 x x 
			 Oldham 0 0 0 0 
			 Rochdale 0 0 0 0 
			 Salford x x 0 0 
			 Stockport 0 0 x 0 
			 Tameside x x x 0 
			 Trafford 0 0 0 0 
			 Wigan x 0 x x 
			 Barnsley 0 0 0 0 
			 Doncaster 10 0 x 0 
			 Rotherham x x x 0 
			 Sheffield 0 0 0 0 
			 Bradford x 0 0 0 
			 Calderdale 0 0 0 0 
			 Kirklees x 0 x 0 
			 Leeds x x x x 
			 Wakefield x x x 0 
			 Gateshead 0 0 0 0 
			 Newcastle upon Tyne 0 0 0 0 
			 North Tyneside 0 0 0 0 
			 South Tyneside 0 0 0 0 
			 Sunderland 0 0 0 0 
			 Isles of Scilly 0 0 0 0 
			 Bath and North East Somerset x 0 x x 
			 City of Bristol 0 0 x 0 
			 North Somerset 0 0 0 0 
			 South Gloucestershire x 0 0 0 
			 Hartlepool 0 0 0 0 
			 Middlesbrough 0 0 0 0 
			 Redcar and Cleveland 0 0 0 0 
			 Stockton on Tees 0 0 0 0 
			 City of Kingston-Upon-Hull x x x 0 
			 East Riding of Yorkshire x 0 10 x 
			 North East Lincolnshire 0 0 0 0 
			 North Lincolnshire 0 0 x 0 
			 North Yorkshire x 0 x 0 
			 York 0 0 0 0 
			 Bedfordshire x x 0 0 
			 Luton 0 0 0 0 
			 Buckinghamshire x 0 x 0 
			 Milton Keynes 0 0 0 0 
			 Derbyshire 10 x x x 
			 Derby 0 0 0 0 
			 Dorset 0 0 0 0 
			 Poole 10 x 10 x 
			 Bournemouth 0 0 0 0 
			 Durham x 0 10 x 
			 Darlington 0 0 0 0 
			 East Sussex x x 0 0 
			 Brighton and Hove 0 0 x x 
			 Hampshire x x x x 
			 Portsmouth x 0 x 0 
			 Southampton 0 0 10 x 
			 Leicestershire 0 0 x 0 
			 Leicester City 0 0 x 0 
			 Rutland 0 0 0 0 
			 Staffordshire 0 0 x 0 
			 Stoke 0 0 0 0 
			 Wiltshire x 0 x 0 
			 Swindon 0 0 x x 
			 Bracknell Forest 0 0 0 0 
			 Windsor and Maidenhead 0 0 0 0 
			 West Berkshire 0 0 x 0 
			 Reading 0 0 x 0 
			 Slough 0 0 0 0 
			 Wokingham 0 0 x 0 
			 Cambridgeshire x x 0 0 
			 Peterborough 0 0 0 0 
			 Cheshire 10 0 x x 
			 Halton 0 0 0 0 
			 Warrington 0 0 x 0 
			 Devon x 0 x x 
			 Plymouth x 0 0 0 
			 Torbay 0 0 0 0 
			 Essex x 0 10 x 
			 Southend 0 0 0 0 
			 Thurrock 0 0 0 0 
			 Herefordshire x x 0 0 
			 Worcestershire x 0 0 0 
			 Kent 0 0 x 0 
			 Medway 0 0 x x 
			 Lancashire x 0 x x 
			 Blackburn with Darwen 0 0 0 0 
			 Blackpool 0 0 x x 
			 Nottinghamshire 0 0 0 0 
			 Nottingham 0 0 x 0 
			 Shropshire 0 0 0 0 
			 Telford and Wrekin x x 0 0 
			 Cornwall x 0 0 0 
			 Cumbria x 0 0 0 
			 Gloucestershire 0 0 x 0 
			 Hertfordshire 0 0 x 0 
			 Isle of Wight 0 0 0 0 
			 Lincolnshire 0 0 x 0 
			 Norfolk 0 0 0 0 
			 Northamptonshire x 0 10 x 
			 Northumberland 0 0 0 0 
			 Oxfordshire x 0 0 0 
			 Somerset x x 10 x 
			 Suffolk 10 x x 0 
			 Surrey x 0 10 0 
			 Warwickshire 0 0 0 0 
			 West Sussex 0 0 0 0 
			 England 130 40 150 40 
			 (1) Includes middle schools as deemed. (2) Includes city technology colleges and academies (including all-through academies). (3) Includes maintained and non-maintained special schools. Excludes general hospital schools. (4) Pupils may be counted more than once if they were registered at more than one school or moved schools during the school year.  Notes: 1. Those pupils counted in the 'more than 20' category are also included in the 'more than 15' category. 2, Figures rounded to nearest 10.  Source: School Census

Sports: Primary Education

Michael Gove: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what estimate he has made of the number of  (a) comprehensive and  (b) maintained primary schools which held a school sports day in the latest period for which figures are available.

Iain Wright: The annual PE and Sport survey collects data from maintained schools relating to pupils' participation in PE and sport. The 2008/09 survey found that all primary schools and 98 per cent. of secondary schools held a sports day during the last academic year.

HEALTH

Abortion

Anne Milton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the answer of 3 February 2010,  Official Report, columns 382-3W, on abortion, what the evidential basis is for the statement that additional funding for contraception in the last two years has contributed to a decrease in abortion rates.

Gillian Merron: The Department invested additional funds in contraception services in April 2008 (£12.8 million), September 2008 (£10 million) and April 2009 (£11.6 million). In each of the last five quarters (July 2008 to September 2009), the abortion rate was lower than the corresponding quarter in the preceding year. As these decreases in the abortion rate coincide with the period in which the additional investment was available, we believe that the additional investment, and other measures we have taken, has made a contribution towards the decreases in the abortion rate.

Aortic Aneurysm: Screening

Richard Spring: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  how much the NHS Abdominal Aortic Screening programme has cost to date;
	(2)  how many phases of NHS Abdominal Aortic Screening programme there will be;
	(3)  which NHS trusts have submitted an application to the NHS Abdominal Aortic Screening programme to begin an ultrasound screening programme for aortic aneurysms;
	(4)  what the timetable is for the full implementation of the NHS Abdominal Aortic Screening programme;
	(5)  what estimate his Department made about the number of patients who will have been screened in each of the sites covered by phase one of the NHS Abdominal Aortic Screening programme after  (a) one year and  (b) five years;
	(6)  when ultrasound screening for aortic aneurysms will begin in each of the sites covered by phase one of the NHS Abdominal Aortic Screening programme;
	(7)  what steps his Department is taking to ensure that men aged 65 years old participate in an ultrasound screening programme for aortic aneurysms  (a) at each of the early implementation sites and  (b) when the programme is fully implemented.

Ann Keen: The NHS Abdominal Aortic Aneurysm screening programme has cost £5,335,809.50 up to the end of March 2010. This is made up of start up and full year costs for six early implementation sites, start up costs for four phase one sites, screening equipment for 10 sites, training of technicians and information leaflets.
	It is anticipated that there will be a maximum of eight phases of roll out, however the exact number is unknown as this depends on the number of applications received and geographical fit of each local screening programme.
	The following national health service trusts have been successful with their applications to begin ultrasound screening for aortic aneurysms:
	
		
			  Phase  Screening Programme  NHS Trust 
			 Early Implementation Gloucestershire Gloucestershire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust 
			 Early Implementation West Sussex Royal West Sussex NHS Trust 
			 Early Implementation South West London St George's Healthcare Trust 
			 Early Implementation South Devon and Exeter South Devon Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust 
			 Early Implementation South Manchester Central Manchester and Manchester Children's University Hospital NHS Foundation Trust 
			 Early Implementation Leicestershire University Hospitals of Leicester NHS Trust 
			 Phase 1 Peninsula Royal Cornwall Hospitals NHS Trust Plymouth Hospitals NHS Trust 
			 Phase 1 Heartlands Heart of England NHS Foundation Trust 
			 Phase 1 South East London Guy's and St Thomas' Hospital NHS Trust 
			 Phase 1 North East Gateshead Health NHS Foundation Trust 
			 Phase 1 North Central London The Royal Free Hampstead NHS Trust 
			 Phase 1 North West London Imperial Healthcare NHS Trust 
			 Phase 1 East Yorkshire and The Humber Hull and East Yorkshire Hospital NHS Trust 
		
	
	It is anticipated that full national roll out of the Abdominal Aortic Aneurysm screening programme will be completed by the end of 2012-13.
	The following table details the numbers of patients screened in phase one after a) one
	year and b) five years:
	
		
			  Screening Programme  Year One  Year Five 
			 Peninsula 4,369 29,512 
			 South East London 4,818 32,548 
			 North East 11,598 78,350 
			 Heartlands 3,364 22,721 
			 North Central London 3,966 26,789 
			 North West London 7,349 49,648 
			 East Yorkshire and The Humber 4,199 28,363 
		
	
	All phase one sites will be screening by the end of May 2010.
	The national programme team have put in place a number of measures to ensure the highest possible take up of screening once men have been identified for screening through their general practitioner. Examples include:
	Involving 65 year old men when developing the initial communication materials for the screening programme to ensure that key messages were targeted at the right level;
	National information leaflets have been designed for use in local programmes to ensure consistency of messages and offer informed choice;
	Recruiting a Communications manager to work with local programmes ensuring that the right information is promoted to suit their local demographic; and
	Commissioning an independent evaluation of all information to assess:
	whether the patient information materials met the needs of men invited for screening
	how well men invited for screening understand the risks they may face and;
	assess how well health professionals think the information meets the needs of men invited for screening and the programme itself.

Aortic Aneurysm: Screening

Richard Spring: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many patients have been screened as part of the NHS Abdominal Aortic Screening programme at each early implementation site.

Ann Keen: The following table details the number of patients screened by each screening programme to the end of February 2010:
	
		
			  Screening Programme  Numbers of patients screened 
			 Gloucestershire 4,214 
			 Leicestershire 4,247 
			 South West London 3,000 
			 South Devon 2,276 
			 South Manchester 1,878 
			 West Sussex 3,111

Basildon and Thurrock University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust

Andrew MacKinlay: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what recent assessment has been made of the standard and quality of care and management at Basildon and Thurrock Hospital Trust by  (a) Monitor,  (b) the Care Quality Commission and  (c) his Department.

Mike O'Brien: Chris Mellor, Acting Chair of Monitor, the regulatory body for NHS Foundation Trusts, has written to my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State (Andy Burnham) about the progress being made at the trust.
	Monitor has advised that further progress has been made at the trust since December 2009.
	The Care Quality Commission (CQC) has advised that it has an ongoing engagement with Basildon and Thurrock as part of the registration process which began in January. CQC is in the process of assessing whether conditions will need to be attached to the trust's registration on 1 April.
	The Secretary of State (Andy Burnham) will update the House in a written ministerial statement which will be issued on 5 March.

Bone Marrow Disorders: Drugs

Phil Willis: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  whether the drug Peginterferon alfa-2a has been approved by the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence for use with patients with essential thrombocythaemia;
	(2)  which primary care trusts in  (a) London and  (b) the South East have approved the funding for the treatment of essential thrombocythaemia with Peginterferon alfa-2a.

Mike O'Brien: Peginterferon alfa-2a is not licensed for the treatment of essential thrombocythaemia and the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence has not been asked to appraise it for this condition.
	Information on primary care trusts' funding decisions is not collected centrally.

Colorectal Cancer: Screening

Nigel Evans: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps his Department is taking to increase the levels of participation in bowel cancer screening programmes.

Ann Keen: Primary care trusts (PCTs) are responsible for screening services, including the promotion of the national health service bowel screening programme. We would expect those areas with low bowel screening uptake rates to develop targeted programmes to tackle this locally.
	As the bowel cancer screening programme was implemented in local areas, NHS Cancer Screening Programmes sent out an information pack to all local general practitioners (GPs). As well as explaining how the programme works, the packs contained promotional information, including posters for GPs to use to promote the programme in their own practices.
	The National Awareness and Early Diagnosis Initiative, launched in November 2008, is working with NHS Cancer Screening Programmes on key messages and awareness programmes to improve screening uptake, particularly in deprived groups.

Complementary Medicine

Phil Willis: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what complementary or alternative treatments, medicines or therapies are offered through the National Health Service; and what evidence his Department has considered on the efficacy of each.

Gillian Merron: The commissioning and funding of any treatments, including complementary/alternative, is the responsibility of the national health service. Many strategic health authorities and primary care trusts have developed their own policies on which treatments they will provide based one the safety and clinical and cost-effectiveness of a treatment as well as the availability of suitably qualified/regulated practitioners. When developing guidance for the management of health conditions, the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) considers complementary therapies, where appropriate and sufficient evidence of effectiveness exists, alongside conventional treatments.

Dementia

Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  how many staff in a  (a) elderly mentally infirm and  (b) standard care home are required to have a qualification in dementia awareness;
	(2)  Health what recent estimate he has made of the  (a) length of stay in care homes of residents with dementia and  (b) proportion of residents in care homes with a diagnosis of dementia.

Phil Hope: The Care Homes Regulations 2001 - Regulation 18 - require homes to
	ensure that at all times suitably qualified, competent and experienced persons are working at the care home in such numbers as are appropriate for the health and welfare of service users.
	This will include ensuring that there are suitable numbers of staff trained and able to care for residents with dementia.
	We are informed by the NHS Information Centre that data on the length of stay in care homes of residents with dementia and the proportion of residents in care homes with a diagnosis of dementia are not collected centrally.
	The Care Quality Commission (CQC) registers care homes under the Care Standards Act 2000 (CSA), which remains operational until 30 September 2010. The CSA makes no provision for a registration category of elderly mentally infirm. Homes are registered with CQC as care homes or care homes with nursing.
	Subject to the approval of Parliament, care homes will be registered from 1 October 2010 under the 'regulated activity' in which they are engaged - that is, 'accommodation for persons who require nursing or personal care'. It will be for CQC to decide whether to record detailed information for each care home, such as whether it provides care for people with dementia.

Health Act 2009

Lembit �pik: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what progress his Department has made on its consultation on the provisions of the Health Act 2009 relating to tobacco; when he expects to  (a) publish a report on the consultation and  (b) lay before Parliament the consequent statutory instruments; and if he will make a statement.

Gillian Merron: On 26 February 2010, the Government published Consultation on proposed tobacco control regulations for England (under the Health Act 2009): Summary of consultation responses on the Department's website. A copy has been placed in the Library.
	Two sets of regulations for England were laid before Parliament on 27 January 2010, prohibiting tobacco sales from vending machine and regulating tobacco product prices lists and labels.
	Two further sets of regulations for England were laid before Parliament on 2 March 2010 regulating the removal of tobacco displays and tobacco advertising and display by specialist tobacconists.

Health Services: Worcestershire

Peter Luff: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the answer of 25 February 2010,  Official Report, columns 747-48W, on health services: Worcestershire, what consultation he plans to undertake on the preferred option for the delivery of community services; and what objectives he has set for that consultation.

Mike O'Brien: The Department would not consult on proposals in Worcestershire. This is a matter for Worcestershire primary care trust (PCT).
	'Transforming Community Services: The Assurance and Approval Process for PCT-provided Community Services', makes clear that patients and the public should be involved in any proposed service change that may arise from an organisational change. This document has already been placed in the Library. Sustained engagement of patients, public, staff, their unions and representatives, and key stakeholders is essential. This is a process that is managed locally by PCTs, and assured by strategic health authorities.

Home Care Services: Finance

Andrew Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the answer of 8 December 2009,  Official Report, column 296W, on social services: finance, from which of his Department's budgets the remaining £228 million required to fund the provisions of the Personal Care at Home Bill will be taken; and how much will be taken from each budget.

Phil Hope: In 2010-11, we are meeting half of the full implementation costs-£420 million-as implementation starts from October. These are being met as explained in my reply on 8 December 2009,  Official Report, column 296W to the hon. Member for Boston and Skegness (Mark Simmonds).
	The remaining half year costs will be found from 2011-12. Detailed budget prioritisation decisions for 2011-12 onwards will be taken once the outcome of the next Spending Review is available, as the Department's total budget beyond 2010-11 is not yet known.

Home Care Services: Finance

Andrew Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the answer of 8 December 2009,  Official Report, column 296W, on social services: finance, whether the savings in  (a) administration and  (b) management consultancy spending will be made in (i) his Department and (ii) primary care trusts.

Phil Hope: The savings will be made in the Department.

Home Care Services: Finance

Lorely Burt: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what estimate he has made of the proportion of funding that local councils will have to contribute to implementation of the free social care at home scheme.

Phil Hope: I refer the hon. Member to the reply I gave to the hon. Member for Eddisbury (Mr. O'Brien) on 10 December 2009,  Official Report, column 553W.

Leukaemia: Drugs

Derek Twigg: To ask the Secretary of State for Health when he expects to receive the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence's recommendations on the use of dasatinib and nilotinib for chronic myeloid leukaemia patients.

Mike O'Brien: I understand that the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) currently expects to issue final guidance to the NHS on the use of dasatinib and nilotinib for the treatment of imatinib-intolerant chronic myeloid leukaemia (CML) in June 2010. Details of this appraisal are available on NICE'S website at:
	http://guidance.nice.org.uk/TA/Wavel7/18
	NICE will schedule the technology appraisal of dasatinib and nilotinib for the treatment of imatinib-resistant CML into the review of its published guidance on the use of imatinib for the treatment of CML.

Leukaemia: Drugs

Derek Twigg: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many people with chronic myeloid leukaemia have been prescribed  (a) dasatinib and  (b) nilotinib in the last 12 months.

Mike O'Brien: Information is not collected centrally on the number of people prescribed drugs or for what purpose drugs are prescribed.
	In the period October 2008 to September 2009, the latest 12 months available, there were 109 prescriptions for dasatinib and less than 100 for nilotinib written in the United Kingdom and dispensed in the community in England.
	Information for hospital prescribing is not available.

Medical Treatments Abroad

Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what estimate he has made of the number of people referred by NHS commissioners for proton therapy treatment abroad in each of the last five years.

Ann Keen: Proton beam therapy became a nationally commissioned service in April 2008. Prior to this, the service was commissioned by individual primary care trusts (PCTs) and figures are not available on the numbers of patients referred for treatment abroad.
	In 2008-09, 24 patients were referred to the proton reference panel for consideration for proton beam therapy treatment. Of these, eight patients were turned down by the panel, six were not treated by the centre for clinical reasons, and 10 patients were treated.
	In 2009-10, 67 patients were referred to the proton reference panel. Of these, 30 patients were accepted for treatment: and 17 of them received or are currently receiving treatment during 2009-10. Six patients were accepted by the panel, but were not treated by the centre for clinical reasons and three patients require more surgery before being considered further for proton beam therapy. Nine patients are still being considered by the panel.

Members: Correspondence

David Winnick: To ask the Secretary of State for Health when he expects to reply to the letter of 2 February 2010 from the hon. Member for Walsall North concerning a constituent.

Phil Hope: A reply was issued to my hon. Friend on 3 March 2010.

Mental Health Services

Simon Burns: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many independent investigations into cases of patients receiving treatment for mental health reasons have been commissioned in  (a) West Chelmsford constituency and  (b) England in each of the last five years.

Phil Hope: I refer the hon. Member to the written answer I gave the hon. Member for Mid-Bedfordshire (Nadine Dorries) on 22 February 2010,  Official Report, column 134W.

NHS: Negligence

Greg Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many claims for clinical negligence as a result of NHS hospital mistreatment for which compensation has been awarded were made in each of the last five years; what the monetary value of the five largest payments was in each such year; and which hospitals were involved.

Ann Keen: The NHS Litigation Authority covers claims made against the national health service in England only. Claims are not made under the heading of mistreatment and an answer could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

NHS: Procurement

Mark Harper: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many contracts have been awarded through the NHS Supply Chain Framework for the Supply of Endoscopy Products  (a) following a mini-competition and  (b) under the terms of the framework itself.

Mike O'Brien: NHS Supply Chain has the following endoscopy framework agreements:
	Endoscope Disinfectants and Detergents
	Endoscopy Consumables
	Endosurgery
	Rigid Endoscopes
	Flexible Endoscopy
	Automated Endoscope Reprocessors.
	'Endoscope Disinfectants and Detergents' is a national framework established in 2009 with nine suppliers. All orders and deliveries are via NHS Supply Chain. There are no mini-competitions or quotations. 186 trusts have made purchases against the framework from April 2009 to the present.
	'Endoscopy Consumables' is a national framework established in 2008 with 10 suppliers. All orders and deliveries are via NHS Supply Chain. There are no mini-competitions or quotations. 170 trusts have used the framework to make purchases from April 2009 to the present.
	'Endosurgery' is a national framework. There have been six mini-competitions and 210 trusts have gone though this framework. The framework has 17 suppliers and most purchases are made through NHS Supply Chain. However, there is a mini-competition option whereby trusts can create a local pricing agreement under the coverage of the national framework.
	'Rigid Endoscopes' is a national, direct-supply framework. There have been no mini-competitions and 120 trusts have gone through this framework. Trusts request quotations for equipment from NHS Supply Chain and these quotes are then compiled by suppliers and subsequent orders and deliveries are facilitated directly. There is an option for mini-competitions but as yet no trusts have chosen this option.
	There have been 340 contracts awarded though the 'Flexible Endoscopy' framework, with one mini-competition. 175 trusts have gone through this framework. The contracts are delivered direct from suppliers against this framework.
	There have been 56 contracts awarded through the 'Automated Endoscope Reprocessors' framework. 36 trusts have gone though this framework, with no mini-competitions. The contracts are delivered direct from suppliers against this framework.

NHS: Procurement

Mark Harper: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what estimate he has made of the proportion of NHS trusts that have chosen to  (a) purchase endoscopy products through NHS Supply Chain's Framework for the Supply of Endoscopy Products and  (b) buy directly from suppliers.

Mike O'Brien: This information is not held centrally.

NHS: Sight Impaired

Lynne Featherstone: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  what guidance his Department has issued to NHS providers on communication with visually-impaired patients in accessible formats; what systems are in place to monitor the provision of such materials; and if he will make a statement;
	(2)  what estimate he has made of the proportion of visually-impaired patients who received communications from NHS providers in accessible formats in each of the last five years; and if he will make a statement;
	(3)  what proportion of  (a) hospitals and  (b) GP surgeries have used (i) Braille, (ii) large print and (iii) audio to communicate with visually-impaired patients in each of the last five years; and if he will make a statement.

Lindsay Hoyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what recent assessment he has made of the adequacy of provision of information in hospitals for blind, partially sighted and print-disabled people.

Phil Hope: Information on the proportion of national health service providers that have provided Braille, large print, audio or other accessible communications to patients in general practice (GP) surgeries or hospitals in each of the last five years is not collected centrally.
	The Disability Discrimination Act 1995 confers a duty on NHS providers to make reasonable adjustments for disabled people, including making information accessible to people with visual impairments. The NHS Constitution also commits the NHS to offer patients accessible information to enable them to participate fully in their health care decisions.
	Under the Disability Discrimination Act 2005 each NHS organisation is required to develop a Disability Equality Scheme, based on real engagement with local people, including those who are blind or partially sighted. They are required to implement the action plans set out in their schemes; and report annually on their progress, the results of their information gathering and how this information has been used.
	Listed Government Departments, including the Department, must publish a report setting out an overview of progress on disability equality as well as proposals for co-ordinated action between authorities in the sector to progress disability equality. The Department's first report, which was published in December 2008, acknowledges that patients who are blind or have severe visual impairments report significantly lower levels of satisfaction when making choices following a referral for hospital treatment. The introduction of data broken down by impairment in national GP access and choice surveys will allow NHS organisations in addressing such differences in satisfaction levels.
	To support service improvements, the Department has also co-produced Improving Access, Responding to Patients: a 'how to' guide for GP practices in 2009. This guide brings together good practice case studies with step-by-step guides and top tips, developed and disseminated by national stakeholders. It has been distributed to every GP practice, primary care trust and strategic health authority in England and a copy has already been placed in the Library.

Putney Hospital: Valuation

Justine Greening: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what estimate the district valuer has made of the monetary value of the Putney Hospital site in each of the last 10 years.

Mike O'Brien: This information is not held centrally.

Swine Flu: Vaccination

Roger Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many units of Swine influenza vaccine are available to be dispensed to UK patients.  [Official Report, 8 April 2010, Vol. 508, c. 16MC.]

Gillian Merron: As of 26 February 2010, the amount of swine influenza vaccine available to be dispensed was 25.3 million doses, held centrally, plus the stock currently held in the national health service across the United Kingdom.
	This is based on the total amount of swine influenza vaccine delivered to the United Kingdom from Baxter and GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) at approximately 38.5 million doses, less the total number of doses sent out to the NHS England, up to 24 February, which was approximately 13.2 million.

ENERGY AND CLIMATE CHANGE

Biofuels

Graham Stringer: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what recent estimate he has made of the annual requirement for biomass for burning in  (a) power stations and  (b) for renewable heat; and what proportion of that requirement (i) is currently imported and (ii) will be imported in each of the next five years.

David Kidney: holding answer 3 March 2010
	I refer my hon. Friend to the reply I gave to my hon. Friend the Member for Sherwood (Paddy Tipping),  Official Report, 23 February 2010, column 466W which gave estimates for the amount of biomass needed for new power stations. For existing heat and power installations, the Department's Digest of UK Energy Statistics shows that in 2008 3.23 million tonnes (oil equivalent) of biomass were used to generate electricity and 0.74 million tonnes (oil equivalent) of biomass were used to generate heat. Assuming an average energy value of 18 gigajoules per tonne of biomass, this gives a total of 7.5 million tonnes of biomass for electricity generation and 1.7 million tonnes of biomass for heat generation.
	Full records are not currently available for the country of origin of biomass used in the UK. Robust biomass supply chains are only now becoming established across the UK and biomass fuels are increasingly traded as a global commodity. The share of imports will depend on numerous factors, including progress with developing indigenous supply chains for waste wood, virgin material and energy crops. Heat-only installations are more likely to use UK sourced feedstocks.
	The European Commission's recently published recommendations for sustainability criteria for solid biomass include a recommendation to monitor the origin of feedstocks. DECC will make an announcement later this month, setting out what actions the Government can now take to introduce sustainability standards for biomass used for heat and electricity in the UK. We already require sustainability reporting under the renewables obligation. This requirement was introduced in April 2009 and the first reporting cycle is due later this year. The sustainability report will include data on the type and origin of biomass used for electricity generation.

Carbon Emissions

Charles Hendry: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change with reference to paragraph 7.21, page 123, of the pre-Budget report, Cm 7747, when he plans to publish decarbonisation pathways to 2050.

Joan Ruddock: In the Low Carbon Transition Plan, the Government committed to publish Pathways to 2050 in spring 2010.

Departmental Paper

Martin Horwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what  (a) suppliers and  (b) brands of (i) paper and (ii) paper products his Department uses; and what his Department's policy is on the procurement of those materials.

Joan Ruddock: The information is as follows:
	 (a) The principal suppliers that the Department has used in the current financial year are Banner Office Supplies, The Office Depot, The Paper Company and Lyreco.
	 (b) The most common paper brand used is Evolve 100 per cent. recycled paper. Other brands sourced have predominantly been the suppliers' own brands. For other paper products the Department uses appropriate brands that are available from the preferred suppliers catalogues. It is not possible to identify all of these without incurring undue cost.
	The Department's policy is to source paper that is 100 per cent. recycled wherever possible and that the usage of paper is kept to a minimum. All printers and photocopiers are set to double sided printing as the standard default and printing of e-mails is discouraged.

Energy Conservation

Charles Hendry: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change how many homes had received assistance under the Community Energy Saving Programme on the latest date for which figures are available.

Joan Ruddock: The Community Energy Saving Programme (CESP) went live on 1 September 2009. There are currently six CESP schemes that have commenced-one in Walsall, one in Bristol and four in Birmingham. Together these schemes will deliver energy efficiency benefits to around 900 households.
	Figures for the number of completed actions in households will be available from 1 May 2010 when Ofgem is required to provide its first report to the Secretary of State.

Energy: Infrastructure

Annette Brooke: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what estimate his Department has made of the  (a) quantity,  (b) duration of storage and  (c) toxicity of the hazardous material to be kept on the 11 nuclear power sites assessed in the consultation on the Draft National Policy Statements for Energy Infrastructure.

David Kidney: As part of the Draft Nuclear National Policy Statement (NPS) an appraisal of sustainability was carried out. The Main Appraisal of Sustainability Report(1) (Chapter 6) and Annex K(2) present the findings for the arrangements for managing radioactive and hazardous wastes arising from the Nuclear NPS.
	The main hazardous material that is expected to be stored at new nuclear power stations will be spent fuel. It is the operator's responsibility to provide storage facilities for the waste produced. Storage facilities will have to satisfy the requirements of the independent safety, security and environmental regulators. The quantity of spent fuel produced by a single new nuclear power station depends on a number of factors, including the capacity of the plant, its operational lifetime and various other operational considerations.
	The Nuclear Decommissioning Authority (NDA) has estimated that an AP-1000 reactor operating for 60 years would give rise to an estimated 2,560 spent fuel assemblies, equivalent to 640 disposal canisters. And that a UK EPR reactor operating for 60 years would give rise to an estimated 3,600 spent fuel assemblies, equivalent to 900 disposal canisters.
	It is possible that interim storage facilities for spent fuel could be required for around 160 years (estimated 60 years station operating life, 100 years cooling period prior to disposal). However, the estimate of up to 100 years cooling is based on a set of conservative assumptions and there are a number of factors that may shorten the actual storage period that is likely to be required.
	The actual cooling time required will depend in practice upon the level of burn-up achieved, designs of the disposal package, the disposal concept and design and its geological setting, which will all offer scope for optimisation and consequent shortening of the required storage time.
	The activity and dose rate of spent fuel from new reactors are presented in the NDA's Disposability Assessment Reports for the AP-1000(4) and UK EPR(5) reactors. The NDA concluded in its assessments that the radionuclide characteristics of spent fuel from the AP-1000 and UK EPR reactors are consistent with those from Sizewell B Pressurised Water Reactor.
	There will also be other hazardous materials produced. These will include intermediate level wastes (ILW), low level wastes (LLW) and non-radioactive hazardous wastes.
	The volume of packaged ILW (both operational and decommissioning) produced by a UK EPR operating for 60 years is estimated to be in the range 2,097-3,65lm(3 )dependent upon the packaging system used. For an AP-1000 operating for 60 years, the volume of packaged ILW produced is estimated to be around 3,450m(3).
	The Government expects that ILW will be safely and securely stored on site as it is for current UK nuclear power stations. The ILW will be disposed of when a geological disposal facility is available to accept this waste.
	The NDA has assessed the activity and dose rate from ILW and reported that the principal radionuclides present in the wastes are similar to those present in the wastes arising from Sizewell B Pressurised Water Reactor.
	Long-term storage on site of LLW and non-radioactive hazardous wastes is not expected to take place. Regulators discourage accumulation of waste at sites of origin if a disposal route is available. These wastes are expected to be disposed of promptly, after it has been generated, through a suitable disposal route.
	(1) DECC. Appraisal of Sustainability of the draft Nuclear National Policy Statement: Main Report. November 2009:
	http://data.energynpsconsultation.decc.gov.uk/documents/aos/mainreport.pdf
	(2) DECC. Appraisal of Sustainability: Radioactive and Hazardous Waste. November 2009.
	http://data.energynpsconsultation.decc.gov.uk/documents/aos/wastematrices.pdf
	(3) Burn-up is a measure of the amount of energy extracted for a given mass of uranium. Units are GWd/tU (gigawatt days per tonne uranium).
	(4) NDA. Geological Disposal Generic Design Assessment: Summary of Disposability Assessment for Wastes and Spent Fuel arising from Operation of the Westinghouse AP1000. October 2009.
	http://www.nda.gov.uk/documents/upload/TN-17548-Generic-Design-Assessment-Summary-of-DA-for-Wastes-and-SF-arising-from-Operation-of-APPWR-October-2009.pdf
	(5) NDA. Geological Disposal Generic Design Assessment: Summary of Disposability Assessment for Wastes and Spent Fuel arising from Operation of the UK EPR. October 2009.
	http://www.nda.gov.uk/documents/upload/TN-17548-Generic-Design-Assessment-Summary-of-Disposability-Assessment-for-Wastes-and-Spent-Fuel-arising-from-Operation-of-the-EPWR.pdf

Energy: Technology

Martin Horwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change how much his Department spent promoting the development and deployment of  (a) low carbon and  (b) energy efficiency technology in 2008-09; how much such funding has been allocated to those technologies in each of the next three years; what assessment he has made of the contribution to the environmental technology economy made by projects in each area funded by his Department; and what mechanisms are in place to monitor the level of that contribution.

Joan Ruddock: The principal funding mechanism for demonstrating low carbon and energy efficiency technologies in 2008-09 was the Environmental Transformation Fund (ETF). In 2008-09 it spent £92 million. Spending figures for 2009-10 will be finalised after the end of the financial year. Final allocations for 2010-11 have not been agreed. In addition to the ETF, in Budget 2009, we announced up to £90 million for FEED studies in support of the first CCS demonstration competition, and a further £45 million for microgeneration. Budget 2009 also announced £155 million for low carbon technologies in 2009-10 and 2010-11. A number of other DECC-funded schemes, such as funding for interest-free energy efficiency loans for small and medium enterprises, also support deployment and demonstration of low carbon technologies.
	No formal assessment has been made of the contribution to the environmental technology economy consequent on this funding. Economic impact was one of the considerations for allocation of the low carbon investment funding announced in 2009. It is our intention to evaluate programmes operated under the ETF and other technology support.

Warm Front Scheme

Bob Spink: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change how many Warm Front assessors have been contracted to the Warm Front scheme; how many assessments each assessor carried out on average in the latest period for which figures are available; and how many assessors his Department expects to remain under contract from 1 May 2010.

David Kidney: There are currently 164 assessors contracted to the Warm Front scheme.
	185,103 surveys were completed between April 2009 and January 2010. The number of assessors contracted to the scheme has fluctuated over this period; it is not therefore possible to provide an accurate figure for the number of assessments each assessor has carried out over the period.
	Eaga, the Warm Front scheme manager, is currently considering scheme activity for 2010-11. As part of this, eaga will consider the anticipated level of assessments to be carried out, which in turn will determine the number of assessors required for the year.

Wood: Transport

Harry Cohen: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what consideration is given to the average length of lorry journey in transporting wood from the processing plant to the international port in assessing the carbon footprint of biomass imports.

Joan Ruddock: The average length of lorry journey in transporting wood from the processing plant to the international port is not collated as part of UK biomass sustainability reporting.
	However, the Environment Agency are developing a tool to enable power generators to determine the carbon emissions associated with their use of biomass. This tool will allow users to model Greenhouse Gas (GHG) emissions according to feedstock type, agriculture practices and transport mode.
	The European Commission's recently published report for sustainability criteria for solid biomass includes a recommendation to monitor the origin of feedstocks. DECC will make a statement later this month, setting out what actions the Government can now take to introduce sustainability standards for biomass used for heat and electricity in the UK. We already require sustainability reporting under the Renewables Obligation. This requirement was introduced in April 2009 and the first reporting cycle is due later this year. The sustainability report will include the available data on the type and country of origin of the biomass used for electricity generation.

Written Questions: Government Responses

Gerald Kaufman: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change when he plans to reply to the letter of 7 January 2010 from the right hon. Member for Manchester, Gorton on Ms K Morrison.

Joan Ruddock: My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change replied to the right hon. Member on the 2 March with apologies for the delay.

BUSINESS, INNOVATION AND SKILLS

Palaeography: Universities

Paul Goodman: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what estimate he has made of the number of places available for the study of palaeography at universities.

David Lammy: I last met the director general of the Russell Group on 23 February. We discussed higher education funding, among other subjects.

Departmental Manpower

Philip Hammond: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how many employees in  (a) his Department and  (b) each of its agencies are in transition prior to being managed out; how long on average the transition window between notification and exit has been in (i) his Department and its predecessors and (ii) each of its agencies in each of the last five years; what estimate he has made of the salary costs of staff in transition in each such year; and what proportion of employees in transition were classed as being so for more than six months in each year.

Patrick McFadden: The Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS) was created in June 2009 from the former Department for Innovation for Universities and Skills (DIUS) and former Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform (BERR). DIUS was created in 2007 from the former DTI and the Department for Education and Skills.
	Between July 2004 and the end of 2006, the Department of Trade and Industry had 488 people in transition; the average transition for these people was approximately three months; no estimate was made of the salary costs of these staff during this period and approximately 17 per cent. of employees in transition were classed as being surplus for more than six months.
	During 2007, DI/BERR had 491 people in transition; the average transition was seven weeks; no estimate was made of the salary costs of these staff during this period and approximately 5 per cent. of those in transition were classed as being surplus for more than six months. DIUS had nobody who was classed as surplus.
	During 2008, there were fewer than five people in transition in BERR. Further information is therefore suppressed on grounds of confidentiality. The information was not collected in former DIUS.
	During 2009 the Department (DIUS and BERR and then BIS) had 11 people in transition; the average transition was 10 weeks; no estimate was made of the salary costs of these staff during this period and approximately 35 per cent. of those in transition were classed as being surplus for more than six months.
	I have approached the chief executives of the Insolvency Service, Companies House, the National Measurement Office and the Intellectual Property Office and they will respond to the hon. Member directly.
	 Letter from Stephen Speed, dated 4 March 2010:
	The Minister of State, for the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS) has asked me to reply to your question regarding how many employees in (a) his Department and (b) each of its agencies are in transition prior to being managed out; how long on average the transition window between notification and exit has been in (i) his Department and its predecessors and (ii) each of its agencies in each of the last five years; what estimate he has made of the salary costs of staff in transition in each such year; and what proportion of employees in transition were classed as being so for more than six months in each year.
	The Insolvency Service has not had any staff in transition within the last five years prior to being managed out, therefore no estimation of salary costs was necessary.
	 Letter from Peter Mason, dated 1 February 2010:
	I am responding in respect of the National Measurement Office to your Parliamentary Question, tabled on 20 January, to the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills asking how many employees are in transition prior to being managed out; how long on average the transition window between notification and exit has been in each of the last five years; and for estimates of the salary costs of staff in transition in each such year together with the proportion of employees in transition which were classed as being so for more than six months in each year.
	There are currently no employees within the Agency who have been officially declared surplus.
	With regard to the position over the last five years, I am advised that I am unable, on grounds of confidentiality, to provide information where there are less than five people in this category. There is, however, one instance that is in the public domain-described on page 33 of the 2007-2008 Annual Report and Accounts of the Agency (then known as the National Weights  Measures Laboratory).
	 Letter from Sean Dennehey, dated 25 January 2010:
	I am responding in respect of the Intellectual Property Office to your Parliamentary Question tabled 20 January 2010, to the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills.
	The Intellectual Property Office began its first redeployment exercise in April 2009. A total of 48 staff were declared surplus in 2009/10 and therefore in transition prior to being managed out. A total of 40 staff have been redeployed, 19 to internal vacancies and 21 externally. There are currently 8 staff in transition. On average, the 40 staff redeployed remained in the transition for 4 months. The budgeted salary cost for this exercise was £425k. 16 people were in transition for more than 6 months.
	 Letter from Gareth Jones, dated 22 January 2010:
	I am replying on behalf of Companies House to your Parliamentary Question tabled 20 January 2010, UIN 313245, to the Minister of State for Business, Innovation and Skills.
	Companies House has not managed out any employees from the Agency in the last five years.

Departmental Marketing

Philip Hammond: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how many brand managers his Department and its predecessors have employed in each of the last five years; and at what cost.

Patrick McFadden: This Department has one member of staff responsible for managing the Department's brand. This includes the publication and dissemination of the brand guidelines and advising on their application. It is estimated that 25 per cent. of this person's time is spent on branding related activities. Based on the average pay costs for a member of staff at this grade this represents a staff cost of approximately £11,241 in 2009/10.
	The former Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform (BERR) and the former Department for Innovation, Universities and Skills (DIUS) each had one member of staff responsible for brand management. The average pay costs for this were:
	
		
			   £ 
			 BERR 2008/09 11,653 
			 BERR/DTI 2007/08 10,512 
		
	
	Figures for staff costs for earlier years could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
	
		
			   £ 
			 DIUS 2008/09 6,300 
			 DIUS 2007/08 12,000 
		
	
	The figure for DIUS in 2007/08 is the total staff cost on branding activity as a larger percentage of staff time was spent on branding issues in the first six months of the Department's existence.

Higher Education: Day Care

Maria Miller: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what recent representations he has received on the provision of child care places by universities for students with young children.

David Lammy: I have received joint representations about nursery closures from the National Union of Students, the University and College Union and UNISON. The provision of nurseries for the children of students is a matter for individual institutions. In addition to the standard student support package, the Government provides generous support to help students with children. A child care grant of up to £13,260 per year is available for eligible full-time, undergraduate students with children in registered and approved child care. In addition, for academic year 2009/10, student parents may also receive a parents' learning allowance of up to £1,508 to meet course-related costs.

Learning and Skills Council for England

Mark Oaten: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills when he expects the Learning and Skills Council to publish on its website the minutes of its National Council Meeting on 9 December 2009.

Kevin Brennan: The acting chief executive of the Learning and Skills Council has recently undertaken a review of its National Council minutes and decided to make public the full minutes from these meetings, subject to the redaction of any sensitive or confidential information which is exempt under the terms of the Freedom of Information Act. The minutes of the 9 December 2009 meeting were published on the LSC's website on 26 February 2010. These can be found at:
	www.lsc.gov.uk

Minimum Wage: Glasgow

William Bain: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how many people in Glasgow North East constituency aged  (a) between 18 and 21 and  (b) 22 years and over have been paid at the rate of the national minimum wage since its introduction.

Patrick McFadden: Data for earnings are not available at the constituency level because of small sample sizes at these levels in the Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings (ASHE).
	Due to rounding in the conversion of payroll data into hourly wage rates and small sample sizes for 18 to 21-year-olds in ASHE, it is not possible at the regional level to infer the number of employees earning exactly at the National Minimum Wage (NMW) with sufficient certainty. However it is possible to estimate the number who were paid at or below the NMW.
	The most recent figure from BIS analysis of the 2009 ASHE indicates the number of jobholders aged 18 to 21 who were paid at or below the NMW in April 2009 in Scotland was 11,000. The number of jobholders aged 22 and over who were paid at or below the NMW in Scotland was 51,000.

Science: Research

Adam Afriyie: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how much funding had been  (a) allocated to and  (b) disbursed from the Science and Research Budget to the (i) Large Facilities Capital fund, (ii) University Capital fund, (iii) Higher Education Innovation fund, (iv) Public Sector Research Establishments fund, (v) Science and Society fund and (vi) other programmes funded from that Budget in 2009-10 on the latest date for which figures are available.

David Lammy: The Science and Research Budget funding figures for 2009-10 are as follows:
	
		
			  £ million 
			   Allocated 2009-10  Expenditure to 31 January 2010 
			 (i) Large Facilities Capital Fund(1) 138 (3)- 
			 (ii) Research Capital investment Fund(1) 258 194 
			 (iii) Higher Education Innovation Fund(2) 99 73 
			 (iv) Public Sector Research Establishments Fund(2) 12 11 
			 (v) Science and Society activities(2) 15 10 
			 (vi) Other programmes(2) 9 5 
			 (1) Capital programme.  (2) Near Cash programme.  (3) There is no expenditure recorded against the Large Facilities Capital Fund as this fund is used to make additional allocations to research councils for approved projects. To date £172 million has been allocated to research councils which includes £50 million of capital allocation brought forwards from 2010-11 under the capital acceleration scheme.   Note:   These figures do not include the allocations to and the expenditure of the research councils and the national academies.